S’bu Nkosi scored a brace as the Sharks smashed Free State 45-15 in Durban on Saturday to move to the top of the Currie Cup standings. JON CARDINELLI reports.
A full-strength Cheetahs side played against Ulster in Befast in the opening round of the Pro14 on Friday. As a result, Free State were forced to field an inexperienced team in the Currie Cup fixture in Durban on Saturday.
The Cheetahs defence struggled to keep the Sharks’ big forwards at bay in the middle of the field. The visitors were breached out wide on numerous occasions.
Centre Lukhanyo Am and wing S’bu Nkosi broke the line at will. The latter set Louis Schreuder up for the bonus-point try on the stroke of half-time.
The Sharks went to the break with a 24-3 lead. They created a lot of chances and may have scored more points had they been more patient and clinical on attack.
The Cheetahs attempted to slow and stifle the Sharks at the breakdown. Their poor kicking, however, undid the good work at the rucks and allowed the Sharks opportunities to counter-attack.
With the bonus point in the bag, Sharks coach Robert du Preez opted to make a series of changes after half-time. The hosts continued to dominate the collisions, with Nkosi featuring prominently on the left wing.
Nkosi was eventually rewarded for his strong carrying with a try in the 60th minute. The Sharks did well to keep the ball alive in the buildup, and when the final pass found the powerful winger close to the line, nobody was going to stop him from crashing over.
The game opened up in the final quarter and the Cheetahs took advantage to score two tries. Nkosi claimed his second try in the 69th minute, though. Tera Mtembu timed his pass to perfection to set up the winger for a clear run-in to the line.
The Sharks had the opportunity to surpass the 50-point mark in the dying stages. The Cheetahs did enough, however, to force a turnover at the breakdown and deny the hosts an eighth try.
Sharks – Tries: Lukhanyo Am, John-Hubert Meyer, Inny Radebe, Louis Schreuder, Marius Louw, S’bu Nkosi (2). Conversions: Radebe (3), Garth April (2).
Free State Cheetahs – Tries: Marco Mason, Luther Obi. Conversion: Mason. Penalty: Ryno Eksteen.
Sharks – 15 Inny Radebe, 14 Tythan Adams, 13 Jeremy Ward, 12 Lukhanyo Am, 11 Sibusiso Nkosi, 10 Benhard Janse van Rensburg, 9 Louis Schreuder, 8 Lubabalo Mtembu, 7 Jacques Vermeulen, 6 Keegan Daniel, 5 Ruan Botha (c), 4 Tyler Paul, 3 John-Hubert Meyer, 2 Armand van der Merwe, 1 Thomas du Toit.
Subs: 16 Franco Marais, 17 Mzamo Majola, 18 Jean Droste, 19 Wian Vosloo, 20 Michael Claassens, 21 Marius Louw, 22 Garth April.
Free State Cheetahs – 15 Reinhardt Erwee, 14 Carel-Jan Coetzee, 13 JW Jonker, 12 Stephan Janse van Rensburg, 11 Luther Obi, 10 Ryno Eksteen, 9 JP Smith, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Chris Dry (c), 6 Junior Pokomela, 5 Dennis Visser, 4 Nicolaas Immelman, 3 Luan de Bruin, 2 Reinach Venter, 1 Gert Kotze.
Subs: 16 Elandre Huggett, 17 Andrew Kuhn, 18 Sibabalo Qoma, 19 Ntokoza Vidima, 20 Daniel Maartens, 21 Dian Badenhorst, 22 Marco Mason.
Photo: Steve Haag/Gallo Images
