The final round of the pool stages of Vodacom United Rugby Championship closed out on a positive note for the Hollywoodbets Sharks as they defeated the visiting Scarlets 12-3 at Hollywoodbets Kings Park on Saturday evening.
In a match as tight as this, where good sense held sway over creativity, and the wet ball once again playing a big role in the flow of the game, the brave but conservative decisions when points mattered kept the scoreline close, but enough to do the business against a competitive and determined, but ultimately outplayed, Scarlets’ side.
The opening quarter, scoreless as it was, was no less full of action from both sides, with remarkable defence from each team preventing a solitary score, not for lack of trying as the Hollywoodbets Sharks dominated the attacking stats but fell just short as they pressed hard but found themselves thwarted by some excellent work from the visitors defending their line.
The second quarter, another real arm-wrestle, almost went the same way, but for a penalty awarded to the Hollywoodbets Sharks as they fought valiantly for the ball on the ground, with Scarlets under pressure deep in their half and it was Siya Masuku who made no mistake with the penalty conversion as he finally got the scoreboard ticking over.
Directly from the kick-off, the Scarlets sniffed a score of their own as they found themselves in the danger zone in possession and when the Hollywoodbets Sharks were penalised for being offsides in defence of their line, playing advantage, a drop-goal was attempted, and succeeded as the half-time hooter blew, as the Welsh equalised before the referee blew for half-time.
Like last week, a warm evening masked a wet ball and handling was a real test for both sides who would have to come to terms with the conditions in the second half with the spoils evenly shared at three points apiece.
The first 10 minutes of the second half continued the theme of both sides battling in the conditions and neither able to produce a sustained period of attack, although it was the Hollywoodbets Sharks who scored first, Aphelele Fassi shifting to flyhalf when Masuku limped off and it was the fullback-cum-flyhalf who slotted a penalty for his side to retake the lead with half an hour remaining.
With just over 10 minutes remaining, a 21-phase effort, by far the most impressive and sustained period of attack of the game, was rewarded after Scarlets infringed on defence under severe pressure, and Fassi was bang on target with his second penalty, pushing the Hollywoodbets Sharks into 9-3 lead.
With a minute remaining and Scarlets under the pump at scrum time, having conceded two penalties at the set-piece, and on defence, Fassi was handed a penalty right in front and taking his time as the clock wound down, he struck the three-pointer to close out a tough day at the office.
The Scarlets had come to play, although their discipline failed them, conceding 17 penalties in the game, and while they lost, they remain in the top eight and a place in the quarter-finals.
While it may not have been the most flowing game, and Vodacom Man of the Match and captain Eben Etzebeth admitted afterwards that: “We weren’t as clinical as we would have liked,” it was effective and with what was on the line, it was enough, more than enough.
The result of the final match of the weekend between Leinster and Glasgow Warriors went the way of the Irish/Scottish, which finalised the log positions.
Leinster remain top, setting up a quarter-final meeting with eighth-placed Scarlets, with the Vodacom Bulls ending in second place to host seventh-placed Edinburgh, while the Hollywoodbets Sharks, in third will entertain Munster at Hollywoodbets Kings Park and Glasgow in fourth will welcome the DHL Stormers in the final match of the quarters.