Stormers reign supreme in coastal derby against Sharks

An improved second half performance helped the Stormers to beat the Sharks and ended the Durbanites’ good United Rugby Championship (URC) run.

The Stormers won the coastal derby 24-20 in what was a closely contested affair at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday.

The Sharks went into the clash in the Cape having achieved four back-to-back victories in the URC, a tournament they look to improve on this season.

This after the Durban-based franchise finished in the bottom half of the 16-league team in the previous campaign.

It looked like the Sharks were on course for another South African derby victory after they beat the Bulls in Durban last weekend.

The John Plumtree-coached Sharks led 10-5 at halftime, thanks to a try by Yaw Penxe on 32 minutes and five points from the boot of flyhalf Jordan Hendrikse.

The Stormers' first half points came from Seabelo Senatla’s try which put the host ahead on nine minutes.

The hosts were dealt a blow in the opening half when super talented utility back Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu was forced off the pitch with an injury.

The exciting youngster was replaced by Jean-Luc du Plessis with two minutes to play before the halftime break.

The Stormers came back strong in the final half of the clash as they scored two tries in a space of 10 minutes through Deon Fourie and Manie Libbok on 53 and 63 minutes.

The Sharks fought back and scored the second try through Hendrikse with nine minutes to play. The flyhalf added the extras and scored a penalty three minutes later to put the Sharks back in front with 20-17 lead.

However, the host stole the match in the dying minutes when Du Plessis went over and Libbok made no mistake with his conversion.