Stormers hold on to dent Sharks' play-offs hopes

The Sharks' soft underbelly invited much scrutiny before this game and it is there where the Stormers inserted the blade and gutted the visitors at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday.

The Sharks looked destined to be filleted but then remarkably reassembled themselves before the hosts held on for a 29-23 United Rugby Championship win.

In front of an enthusiastic 30,000 crowd the Stormers appeared to be coasting to victory before the Sharks showed great resolve to score three second-half tries to bring the result in doubt in the closing minutes.

Despite spending so much time on the back foot the Sharks, to their credit, stayed in the fight, while the Stormers will lament being so wasteful when second-half opportunities fell their way.

When Rohan Janse van Rensburg easily ghosted past Manie Libbok, slipped the tackle of Deon Fourie before bulldozing Herschel Jantjies and Angelo Davids over the line with 15 minutes to go, the visitors suddenly had something to aim at.

When Stormers replacement prop Sazi Sandi was banished to the bin with 10 minutes to go the Sharks were more emboldened.

Scrumhalf Grant Williams, who had a mostly lamentable afternoon, sidestepped, tiptoed and then sprinted clear of the defence in a try that saw the Stormers lose Seabelo Senatla to the bin.

The Stormers though showed commendable composure in the closing minutes.

While the Sharks showed laudable fighting spirit, they will have to reinforce their set pieces, particularly the scrum.

They also lacked accuracy at line-out and yet, they were able to hold a 6-5 lead by the 20th minute when Bosch added a second penalty.

The Sharks however were playing under duress, pressure emanating from their dysfunctional scrum permeating the rest of their game.

It drained confidence, while providing fertile ground for inaccuracy and hesitancy. That much was evident from another powerful set piece when Manie Libbok's razor-sharp pass found Clayton Blommetjies who drifted outside Werner Kock and scooted in for a try.

Earlier the Stormers regained the lead when good field position helped yield profit.

A poor attempted clearance from Williams followed by an erratic pass from flank Henco Venter allowed Ben-Jason Dixon to profit with an intercept try.

The Stormers were 19-6 up at the break and the Sharks needed the few Springboks they were able to press into action, to take the game to the hosts.

However, left wing Aphelele Fassi who delivered a solid performance, particularly under the high ball in the first half, departed the scene injured in the 43rd minute.

Bosch with the boot, and Van Rensburg with his straight, determined strides helped get the visitors move in the right direction.

Their cause was aided by the Stormers who continued to waste opportunities, most notably through Blommetjies, Jantjies and Suleiman Hartzenberg.

The hosts, however, held on.

Scorers

Stormers (29) — Tries: Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Ben-Jason Dixon, Clayton Blommetjies (2). Conversions: Manie Libbok (3). Penalty: Libbok.

Sharks (23) — Tries: Yaw Penxe, Rohan Janse van Rensburg, Grant Williams. Conversion: Curwin Bosch. Penalties: Bosch (2).

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