The Sharks were beaten 24-12 by Irish side Connacht in their United Rugby Championship encounter on Saturday evening.
The Durban team arrived in Ireland off the back of a five match winning streak, but weren’t able to deliver the result that would have extended their run of form to six victories.
A howling and swirling wind and later driving rain, played havoc with the ball, both sides having difficulty controlling it.But the home side used their experience to help them get a result.
The Sharks, starved of possession and territory, just couldn’t build the necessary momentum they would have strived for.
Connacht struck first blood although it took 20 minutes for them to finish off, having dominated field position for much of the first quarter. A penalty conceded on defence in the Sharks 22 gave the Irish the perfect platform to attack from and they made no mistake with the driving maul over the tryline, for a 5-0 lead.
🦅 @ConnachtRugby secure their 1st W 🆚 @SharksRugby in the #BKTURC 👏#URC | #CONvSHA pic.twitter.com/swHmBmgO13
— BKT United Rugby Championship (URC) (@URCOfficial) January 7, 2023
A few minutes later Connacht doubled their tally with a well-weighted, perfectly-executed chip and chase in the midfield, gathered up and the second try was scored, the Sharks finding themselves 12-0 down after 25 minutes.
Finding matters difficult, Neil Powell’s men went three tries down on the stroke of half-time, a promising attack breaking down and Connacht immediately putting themselves on the front foot, sending the ball into the visitors’ 22, earning a penalty before striking to take a 19-0 lead at the break.
Early in the second half the Sharks showed their true potential as they built up a good head of steam, enjoying their best territorial advantage of the game to force Connacht into their biggest defensive test, conceding a yellow card in the process.
Connacht scored the bonus point try in the 55th minute with a charge down of an attempted clearance kick under pressure.
However, they responded with a well-crafted build-up that Rohan Janse van Rensburg powerfully finishing off following a patient attack to score their first try, with Lionel Cronje converting.
Dian Bleuler was rewarded after some patient effort on attack, the forwards imposing with a strong set of pick-and-drives, showing the kind of accuracy needed with short-range efforts before a strong drive saw the replacement prop over for the final score of the game.
IOL Sport