Stormers (6) 15 - Sharks (9) 12
REPLACEMENT flyhalf Peter Grant's body clock might have said it was 3am after returning from Japan this week, but it was the Stormers fans who were in dreamland when he slotted the winning kick last night.
Grant, with only one training session under his belt kicked the winning penalty from against the main grandstand touchline to seal a gritty win.
The Stormers were way off the pace in the first half and were solidly outplayed for 40 minutes, but their exceptional defence paid off as they rallied in the second half as the visitors wilted after making such a fast start.
Grant will take the plaudits, especially after fullback Joe Pietersen missed four kicks at goal, but there were plenty of heroes on either side in a match that was always going to be defined by the smallest margins.
For the home side, flank Siya Kolisi had a huge game as did No8 Nick Koster, while Sharks flank Marcell Coetzee and centre JP Pietersen won't mind seeing the tape of their performances again.
Sharks hooker Bismarck du Plessis was also much improved after his side lost to the Bulls last week because he emerged from the Newlands tunnel like a new man.
After being outplayed by Chiliboy Ralepelle in week one, Bissie was back to his best, stealing ball on the deck like the best openside flank, making telling tackles and using his massive frame to muscle over the advantage line.
Despite neither tryline being breached, the Sharks showed more ambition than the Stormers in the first half by using every opportunity to bring their strike runners into the game.
Fullback Riaan Viljoen and wings Lwazi Mvovo and Louis Ludik were frequently put into space and only desperate Stormers tackling kept them at bay.
But these moments were the exception and the match could never get going thanks to the constant interruption from referee Mark Lawrence's whistle.
He blew for 11 penalties and a free kick in the opening 40 minutes, ruling that most of the infringements were for offsides. Most of the calls were marginal.
The Stormers were under pressure and were forced into three times as many tackles as their opponents in the opening stanza.
They made 62 tackles to the Sharks' 24. More worrying for the home team, they missed 18 and only their scrambling defence saved them.
As a result it was left to the respective goalkickers to keep the scoreboard moving and neither Pat Lambie nor Pietersen took full advantage of their opportunities.
Lambie missed two, one from nearly 50m. But in a game where the margins were as slim as a blade of grass on the Newlands turf, they were big mistakes.
Lawrence awarded the Stormers seven unanswered penalties in the first 20 minutes of the second half, which led to six points for the home side and a yellow card for Sharks lock Ross Skeate.
In the face of the Stormers resurgence and Lawrence's whistle, the Sharks were always going to struggle.
SCORERS
Stormers 15 - Penalties: Joe Pietersen (3), Peter Grant (2).
Sharks 12 - Penalties: Pat Lambie (4).
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