The Sharks will host DHL Western Province in this year’s Absa Currie Cup final after wildly contrasting victories over the Vodacom Blue Bulls and defending champions the MTN Golden Lions respectively in Saturday’s semi-finals.
sarugby
The final – a repeat of the 2010 showpiece won 30-10 by the men from Durban – will take place on Saturday at Mr Price Kings Park, with kick-off scheduled for 17h00.
It is the Sharks’ fourth final in five years – their third at home during this time – and they will be gunning for a third title to go with those won in 2008 (14-9 over the Blue Bulls, in Durban) and two years ago.
In the first semi-final, flyhalf Pat Lambie, who was an instrumental part of the Sharks’ dominant victory in the 2010 final, turned in a second man-of-the-match performance in as many weeks to help his side to a 20-3 win in Durban in a match played on a rain-drenched pitch.
And at Coca-Cola Park in Johannesburg, Lions flyhalf Elton Jantjies kicked what seemed like a match-winning penalty with 90 seconds remaining – only for WP to maul flanker Deon Fourie over the line on the hooter to seal a famous come-from-behind win and so end the defending champions’ reign.
Sharks (9) 20 Vodacom Blue Bulls (0) 3
Another impressive performance by Pat Lambie inspired the Sharks to a comprehensive win over the Vodacom Blue Bulls to power their way into the Absa Currie Cup final.
If ever there was a time that Lambie could send Bok coach Heyneke Meyer a clear message of his intentions to play flyhalf for the national team, the wet and muddy Durban game was the perfect moment.
With conditions not ideal for running rugby, the Sharks kept their composure more and capitalised on the Blue Bulls’ indiscipline and mistakes, and simply built an innings around Lambie’s boot as the visitors disintegrated in their own frustration.
The Sharks controlled the game from start to finish as their pack gained ascendency; they bettered the Blue Bulls in the scrums and made far less mistakes with ball in hand.
This resulted in almost no ball to attack from in the first half, and the Sharks reveled in their dominance up front. With so much ball and so many attacking opportunities, the pressure had to tell. And with it the Blue Bulls started giving away penalties.
Lambie may have missed his first one, but then slotted a perfect second and simply didn’t look back. But his all-round control of the game was a sign of maturity, and it was costly for the Blue Bulls as he saw space behind the defence on the half hour, and chipped only to be stopped by a trip by prop Morné Mellett.
Mellett was lucky to get only a yellow card but the indiscretion was still costly, as Lambie slotted two more penalties in Mellett’s absence to let the home side lead 9-0 at the break.
In the second half the Blue Bulls’ discipline disintegrated even more, and Lambie kept on slotting the penalties. By the time the reserves started appearing the Sharks were 15-0 up and even when Morné Steyn finally got a shot at goal, the game was virtually over.
Lwazi Mvovo slid in at the corner to put the game beyond doubt, and the Sharks were already looking forward to a home final by then.
Scorers:
Sharks – Try: Lwazi Mvovo. Penalties: Pat Lambie (5).
Blue Bulls – Penalty: Morné Steyn.
MTN Golden Lions (3) 16 DHL Western Province (6) 21
The MTN Golden Lions’ reign as Absa Currie Cup champions came to a dramatic end at Coca-Cola Park as a driving-maul try on the hooter clinched DHL Western Province a famous semifinal win.
The Lions will feel they did everything but win as they were the better team for much of the way and put WP under sustained pressure, but they failed to capitalise on their many opportunities and were left to rue the mistakes late in the game that could be said to have grabbed them defeat from the jaws of victory.
Certainly it looked as if the Lions were on their way to their second consecutive final when flyhalf Elton Jantjies made up for some horrendous early misses by kicking an angled pressure penalty 90 seconds from time that put his side two points ahead.
But then came a mistake when they failed to clear their line from the restart, and WP pulled out the most tried and trusted try-scoring method by mauling their way 17 metres for the match-clinching score off the final move of the game.
There was plenty to enthuse about from the WP attacking play in the second half, with the introduction of Joe Pietersen at fullback and Louis Schreuder as the flyhalf in the last quarter making a dramatic difference to a game that they were losing at that point, but in the end it was that lineout maul that lost the Lions the game.
Jaco Taute, destined to play for the DHL Stormers in Vodacom Super Rugby next year, will kick himself for his role in his team’s demise. He kicked directly into touch in trying to clear the Lions’ red zone and was adjudged by referee Marius Jonker to have done so after the ball was carried back into his 22.
So instead of the Lions getting away from the 22-metre area, they ended up having to defend as Scarra Ntubeni fed the lineout and WP drove inexorably to the line, where flanker Deon Fourie eventually touched down.
It was a sad way for the Lions to end competitive rugby for the season as they head into the no-man’s land that they will find themselves in next season when they watch the Super Rugby tournament played without them.
Scorers:
Lions – Try: Michael Rhodes. Conversion: Elton Jantjies. Penalties: Jantjies (2), Ruan Combrinck.
WP – Tries: Joe Pietersen, Deon Fourie. Conversion: Joe Pietersen. Penalties: Demetri Catrakilis (2), Pietersen.
104: same old, same old. Ai, weer moeilike tydperk en jare wat voorlê. Maar ja, eenmaal ‘n Bul altyd ‘n Bul, sal ook hierdie fase moet deurgaan en hoop die afrigters sien iewers ‘n lig aangaan oor die spelpatroon.
119 @ Sharks_forever:
Although, Tim Dlulane is originally from Kokstad in KZN…..
Oor die gesprekke hier op die blog: mens kan nie heeldag hier rondhang nie, ek stel voor ‘n happy hour of twee elke dag, bv. tussen 7 en 9 die aand.
@ grootblousmile: Yes Rudi , I also checked the academy, he just went there and got bought, I couldnt find anything about Puma’s or straight to the Bulls, But he never played for the Sharks. that i know
@ grootblousmile:
[PDF]
Rugby Certificate Course – The Sharks Academy
http://www.sharksacademy.co.za/INFORMATION_PACKAGE_2013.pdf
File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat – Quick View
Tim Dlulane. • Alistair Hargreaves. • Keegan Daniel. • Lwazi Mvovo. • Patrick Lambie. 2. Fifty – Four (54) ex-Academy players represented the Sharks in the …
120 @ bdb:
Ek is nie seker oor wie nou almal nog o21 kan speel, wat van Arno Botha, en as hy nie geskors word Morne Mellet?
@ Bullscot:
Dagse Bulskot in kort rokkie met gevrieste knatters 😆
126: Arno word 21 in hierdie week, nou weet ek nie hoe die reëls werk nie, of jy letterlik 20 en jonger moet wees, en of jy nog 21 kan wees nie. Die naam ‘onder 21’ beteken seker jy moet 20 of jonger wees. Mellet is al 23.
127: baie groot liefde vir die Skotte, maar weens daai rokkies van hulle sal ek dit nooit kan hou daar in Skotland nie.
Bdb ek was verkeerd oor Mellet hy is al lank nie meer o21, maar Arno Botha is jonger as Jean Cook wat o21 speel, Francois Venter het 21 in April geword ek weet nie wanneer in die jaar is die cut off om te kan speel nie.
@ bdb:
😆
128 @ bdb:
Solank jy onder 21 is in die jaar van die kompetisie… al word jy 21 gedurende die jaar, mag jy onder 21 speel
127 @ Sharks_forever:
Oi hello sharkie but I’ve told you before its not a rok or a skirt its a KILT
@ Bullscot::lol:
132 @ grootblousmile:
Thanks bdb so that would make Francois Venter able to play for the u21s BUT is there a rule that he would have had to play a certain amount of games to be able to be picked? On the other hand that u21 centre pairing sounds like a superb one so maybe not a good idea to break it up now. Yes I know due to William Small Smith being injured for so long they haven’t actually played much together for the Blue Bulls this year but they did play last weekend and some games for the Baby Boks too.
115 @ Puma:Very good article. Evening all, seems like a lot of smiley faces out there – good to see on a Monday!
I see Lambie more in the mould of Jonny Wilkinson. He has that classic flyhalf perfection with the X-factor (just not the perfect boot, but it’s good enough). Very few people have it, but he does. I just hope that he doesn’t become a journeyman a la Brent Russell. If the Ostrich still can’t see his potential after the last two matches then there is no hope.
130: ek sien daar is heelwat ouens wat hierdie jaar 21 geword het wat vir die 0/21’s speel hierdie jaar. So as daar nie een of ander reël is wat sê jy moet 3 of meer wedstryde gespeel het deur die jaar nie, kan Arno Saterdag speel. Dink Arno, Liebenberg en Adendorf sal ‘n goeie losvoorspeler combo maak vir die 0/21’s, maar ook vir die toekoms.
129 @ bdb:
Hey bdb ek se vir jou net sos vir Sharkie dis nie ‘n rokkie nie maar ‘n KILT, en ja jy sal seker maar suffer hier want ons dra net Kilts ons het nie winkels met laang broeke, jeans etc, o ja en mens kan ook nie onderbroeke hier koop nie
135 @ Bullscot:
oeps sorry Gbs meant to say thanks gbs not bdb, got confused because had been mentioning this to bdb, lekker deurmekitaar ek
136 @ Just For Kicks:
Howzit JFK, you doing good? Well done with your win on Saturday, you must be real proud to have all 3 of your teams competing in the finals on Saturday.
As, groot ‘as’, HM die uitgediende skoprugby plan laat vaar, sal ek die volgende Bok agterlyn kies:
Hougaard
Lambie
Habana
Frans
JdV
JPP
Taute/Ludik (Ludik het ‘n beter skopvoet, maar is nie so stewig en vinnig as Taute nie)
137 @ bdb:
Watter een van daai 3 losvoorspelers is die ‘fetcher’? Ek sien ook van die ander BlouBul mense rate vir Jean Cook baie hoog aan wat ook nog jonk is, het nog nie kans gekry om hom te sien speel, wat dink jy van hom?
141: vergeet Frans is beseer, weet nie wie gaan senter speel nie, sal seker JDV en Taute wees, dan kan Ludik heelagter speel.
142: Adendorf, hy was saam met Jan Serfontein genomineer as 0/21 IRB speler van die jaar, was baie goed in die Bokkies wedstryde, maar ek het hom nog nie sien speel vir jong Bulle nie. Cook is ‘n groot seun, so hy kan ook slot sak.
142 @ Bullscot:
Jean Cook KAN fetch, dis verseker!
As die Bulle nou net kan vashou aan Jean Cook, Arno Botha, Adendorf en Liebenberg, is ons losvoorspelers gecover vir klompie jare… Arno het reeds goed deurgekom, Jean is besig om deur te bars…. Adendorf kan ook nog blerrie groot rugby speel.
Laat hulle deurkom tussen die huidige loosies, en dis die regte resep…
…. maar dan moet die Bulle NOU mooooi vir ons luister en die klem begin wegskuiwe van skop en jaag rugby, na balbesit en voordeellyn rugby…. waar die afbreukpunte die sleutel is tot verdere sukses.
Bokgroep word seker na die finaal bekendgemaak, weet iemand ?
@ Bullscot:Ja boet, I am afraid I haven’t been paying much attention to rugby of late – didn’t even get to see the Lions/Stormers match. Good news is, containers is all packed and sent on it’s weary way Cumbria-wards! Amazing how much rubbish you accumulate over the years, we filled a 20′ container to the gunnels, and still have half a house full of furniture – all bound for the auction house!
144 @ bdb:
Ok dankie man, het bitter min van die jong ouens gesien speel. Die BB site het Cook as 1.93m lank, dit is dalk bietjie kort vir ‘n slot, en hy sal sekere nog biejtie gewig aansit maar sy gewig is blykbaar 102kg wat vir my bietjie lig is vir slot, ek sal kraag ‘n slot om en by 115kg gemmideld weeg en baie nader aan 2m of meer lank wil sien, nee wat dink hy moet no 7 flank bly, veral as jy sien ons kry nou vir volgende jaar bietjie diepte by in die slotte. As jou slotte te lig is dan maak dit moeiliker om die skrums te kompeteer.
148: stem saam met jou oor die lengte, minimum 1.98 en meer as 110 weeg. Vir interessantheid – daar is ‘n laaitjie wat nou vir Affies in Pta speel, is 2.04 en weeg so 104 kg. Moet nog gewig bysit, maar hy is nou eers 17, en soos sy ma sê: hy groei nog. Wie weet, dalk kan hy in die toekoms ons volgende Bakkies wees.
145 @ grootblousmile:
ahh thats good news to hear about Cook, good to have a versatile flanker who can be physical and also play the fetcher role thats normally done by someone a little shorter like Stegmann and Brusow. These guys may be good but we need to be patient, Rome wasn’t built in a day, I know we want to always win everything BUT maybe it will take at least another two seasons then we can realistically start EXPECTING trophies at the top level. Sharks are in a good place and should be strong at least for next few years and WP seem to be strong as well especially when their injured guys are all back. Hopefully the sleeping giant down in Cape Town doesn’t wake up because they have so much young talent, both their young teams in finals too and they have also done well for a few seasons at junior level now.
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