Sharks beat Jaguares in damp squib of a match
THEY will welcome the scoreline in Durban, but concerned with the performance that was somehow underwhelming by the Sharks as they hardly moved into top gear on familiar home conditions against the touring Argentinians.
Fortunately for the Sharks, they have a bye next weekend and only return to action on April 22 when they host the Rebels, where hopefully they would have worked on some of their deficiencies.
The Sharks have now overtaken the Jaguares to second spot in the Africa Conference 2 standings and they have moved to within touching distance of log leaders the Lions.
The home side got the scoreboard ticking as early as the sixth minute when Cobus Reinach touched down for the first try of the afternoon and his 10th in Super Rugby after they stole the ball from the Jaguares.
Curwin Bosch, who went into this match as the top point scorer after round six of the competition with 73, failed to convert as the home side settled for an early 5-0 lead.
The Jaguares reduced the deficit through a penalty that was taken by Nicolas Sanchez a few minutes later after Beast Mtawarira was penalised by the referee for illegal binding.
Shortly after, the Sharks were penalised again for collapsing the maul and Sanchez gave the visitors the lead for the first time in the match as he successfully kicked between the poles for his second penalty of the afternoon.
After two successful kicks, Sanchez lost his magic touch as he missed two penalties that followed which could have given the Jaguares a healthy seven-point lead after 20 minutes.
The two teams failed to play constructive and attacking rugby and their work was characterised by schoolboy errors.
One of those mistakes led to the Sharks being awarded a penalty in front of the poles just before the half-hour mark for Bosch to score as the home side regained the lead.
Three minutes from the restart, Andre Esterhuizen scored the Sharks’ second try and his third of Super Rugby as he powered through two Jaguares players who tried to stop him on the edge of the tryline and Bosch converted.
Agustin Creevy scored the Jaguares’ first try of the match just after the hour mark which was awarded after consultation with the TMO and it was converted by Felipe Ezcurra to narrow the score to just two points.
Bosch scored a penalty with two minutes remaining on the clock to calm the nerves as it gave the Sharks a five-point advantage which they held on to until the end.