The Cell C Sharks put on a commanding display in Durban as they secured a 47-20 bonus-point victory over the Vodacom Bulls in their Vodacom United Rugby Championship clash on Saturday.

With their Springbok-filled pack, the Durbanites physically dominated the men from Pretoria, especially at scrum time, and beat them by five tries to two, much to the delight of the nearly 26,000 fans who watched the game at Hollywoodbets Kings Park on New Year’s Eve.

Jake White’s team got off to a good start and led 13–9, but they got two yellow cards late in the first half, which changed the game and gave the home team a 30–13 lead at the break.

In the second half, there was no way back for the Vodacom Bulls. The night belonged to the black team and their captain Siya Kolisi, who was great on both sides of the ball.

The Vodacom Bulls got off to a great start when Chris Smith kicked a penalty goal after the home team was called for holding on after taking the kickoff.

Curwin Bosch tied the game in the eighth minute after his pack put up a huge scrum, but Neil Powell’s team had a hard time dealing with the pressure from the visitors in general play.

The Vodacom Bulls turned down two kickable penalties, and Simphiwe Matanzima looked like he was going to score. However, Kolisi, the captain of the Cell C Sharks and Man of the Match, played tough defense and stopped him from putting the ball on the ground.

Smith and Bosch each kicked a penalty goal before Canan Moodie scored the first try by chipping the ball and catching it again. Smith converted the try to give the Vodacom Bulls a 13-6 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Bosch got back three points, and the Cell C Sharks took the lead when Moodie gave up a penalty try and got a yellow card for knocking Sikhumbuzo Notshe’s pass from Kolisi down.

The Durbanites never gave up, and when Cyle Brink got a yellow card for repeatedly breaking the rules, they had a two-man advantage. They turned to their strong scrum, and Grant Williams, a nimble scrumhalf, made his way through.

Moodie got back on the field, but he couldn’t stop Bongi Mbonambi from scoring from a driving maul. At halftime, the lead was 17 points because Bosch made both of his shots.

In the 10th minute of the second half, Rohan Janse van Rensburg scored a bonus-point try for the Cell C Sharks. He did this by handling the ball well from a lineout. Johan Goosen scored a good try for the Vodacom Bulls, making the score 37-20 going into the fourth quarter.

Bosch added a fourth penalty goal and converted Janse van Rensburg’s second try for a total of 20 points. The visitors ended the game with only 14 players because Moodie was given a red card for a dangerous tackle, which was his second yellow card.

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