The depth and class of the Cell C Sharks came through in the second half as they defeated the Steval Pumas 34-17 in a Currie Cup match at Growthpoint King’s Park tonight.
Fly half Patrick Labie came off the bench 15 minutes into the second half and was the difference in what, up until then, had been a very evenly matched game.
Lambie’s distribution and decision making was brilliant.
After 80 minutes the Pumas were outclassed and outplayed.
The Steval Pumas took the lead in the third minute when they forwards mauled over after winning a scrum 10 metres from the try line. Frikkie Spies claimed the five points and Justin van Staden added the two.
The Sharks held territorial advantage for the rest of the half and had the most of the possession.
The Pumas defended superbly. They made 55 tackles and although seven tackles were missed, the Sharks were kept at bay.
The Pumas line out was poor in the first half. They lost three throw-ins. In the 35th minute hooker, Francois du Toit was replaced by Frankie Horne. Horne’s first throw in was skew, gifting the Sharks possession when the Pumas were on attack.
The Sharks only first-half points came from two penalties by fly half Fred Zeilinga.
They were surprised by the tenacity of the Pumas defence.
The Steval Pumas held a one-point half-time lead.
The Sharks scored in the 45th second of the second half. They attacked from their own kick-off and after numerous phases fullback SP Marias scored. Zeilinga converted to give his team a 13-7 lead.
The Steval Pumas regained the lead through a JC Roos penalty and a brilliant try by Renaldo Botha who found himself on the right wing with two defenders to beat. He powered over and Roos converted to give the Pumas a four-point lead.
Then Lambie came on and the game changed. The quality of the Sharks’ play lifted as the Springbok read the game beautifully.
The Sharks scored three tries in the final 20 minutes as they bulldozed the Pumas.
Jacques Botes scored when the Sharks mauled over the try line. Tera Mtembu and Monde Hadebe nailed the Pumas coffin closed.
The Pumas simply could not match the quality of the Sharks play in the final quarter of the match.
Lambie added three conversions.
The Pumas line-out woes continued in the second half, robbing them of quality possession.
The Pumas matched the Sharks for much of the game. They defended superbly and with the exception of the poor line outs and missed tackles, looked like they could score a major upset.
The Lambie factor was decisive. The Sharks were inspired by the brilliant insight of the pivot and by the time the Pumas blinked it was a bridge too far.
