The Sharks could not capitalise on three Bulls yellow cards, nor slot even a quarter of their goal kicks on the night.
The Bulls held off the Sharks in their United Rugby Championship semi-final at Loftus on Saturday (final score 25–13) to set up a mouth-watering final against Leinster at Aviva Stadium in Ireland next weekend.
The Bulls ended the Sharks’ five-game winning streak through scrum dominance and scintillating backline runs. The Sharks were their own worst enemies, however, failing to capitalise on three Bulls yellow cards or scoring when they were on the Bulls’ tryline with superior numbers twice.
The Sharks rallied in the second half, but their goal-kicking also let them down. In the end, they slotted just one kick out of five.
In the end, the Bulls showed composure in defence when the Sharks eventually found their feet, something they failed to do in their two defeats against the Sharks in the regular season.
Bulls a step ahead of the Sharks
The Bulls kicked off their semi-final by dominating the scrums early on, but an errant pass saw Ethan Hooker nearly open scoring for the Sharks through an intercept try. But it was disallowed for offside.
The Bulls capitalised on their momentum with a Sebastian de Klerk try in the sixth minute following a beautiful line break by Embrose Papier. They extended their lead with an equally impressive try in the 22nd minute, Canan Moodie dotting down a perfectly placed cross kick from De Klerk.
Sharks flyhalf Jordan Hendrikse missed two of three penalty kicks in the first half hour, including a straightforward one, to jeers from the crowd.
The one he slotted turned out to be the only points the Sharks could score in the first half, despite three Bulls yellow cards in the second quarter. The score was 15–3 at the break.
The Sharks responded well in the second half. First Makazole Mapimpi dotted an overlap try next to the touchline while the Bulls were still two men down, and then Ethan Hooker side-stepped a defender to score on the opposite touchline when the Bulls were back at full strength.
Neither were converted, while the Bulls extended their lead through a penalty and converted David Kriel try. They led 25–13 with 12 minutes to play.
The Sharks lost momentum towards the end, spilling chances and giving the ball away as soon as they had it, to end their URC run.
Scorers
Bulls: Tries – Sebastian de Klerk, Canan Moodie, David Kriel. Conversions – Johan Goosen 1/2, Keagan Johannes 1/1. Penalties – Goosen 1/1, Keagan Johannes 1/2.
Sharks: Tries – Makazole Mapimpi, Ethan Hooker. Conversions – Jordan Hendrikse 0/1, Jaden Hendrikse 0/1. Penalties – Hendrikse 1/3.
