In the final round of the Currie Cup league phase, the Sharks host the Pumas, while Boland face Western Cape rivals Western Province at the DHL Stadium.
Siya Masuku’s dramatic late penalty sealed a thrilling win for the Sharks against Boland on Saturday.
The Sharks ran onto Woodburn Stadium in Pietermaritzburg with intensity, pressuring Boland from the first whistle.
Wing Phikolomzi Sobahle thought he’d scored early, but his try was disallowed due to a foot in touch.
After a scoreless first quarter, Sharks hooker Jacques Marais finally crossed to give the hosts a 7-0 lead. Flanker Tino Mavesere extended the advantage to 14-0 before lock Coetzee le Roux was shown a yellow card.
Boland capitalised on the one-man advantage when flanker Sauliegh Arendse crashed over to bring the score to 14-7.
Jean Smith extended the advantage by three points to make it 17-7 at half time, qnd opened the second half with another penalty.
Boland responded with a try from fullback James Tedder, reducing the deficit to 20-14. The Sharks hit back quickly, with Marais scoring his second try of the match to make it 27-14.
Boland kept the pressure on, and prop Dayan van der Westhuizen crossed for their third try. Boland refused to give up, and replacement front-rower HP van Schoor crashed over to make it 30-28, setting up a nail-biting finish.
With minutes remaining, the Sharks were reduced to 14 men when Tiaan Fourie was yellow-carded for cynical play. Boland took advantage, with Tedder slotting the resulting penalty to edge ahead 31-30.
However, the Sharks weren’t done yet. After the final whistle, they won back-to-back penalties.
With the game on the line, Masuku stepped up and slotted the match-winning penalty, securing a dramatic 33-31 victory for the Sharks.
In the final round of the Currie Cup league phase, the Sharks host the Pumas, while Boland face Western Cape rivals Western Province at the DHL Stadium.
This story was first published on sarugbymag.co.za. It is republished here with permission.
