Mike Greenaway
The United Rugby Championship (URC) resumed at the weekend and the Bulls were the pick of the SA Challenge when they subdued Connacht in Galway, a venue the SA teams have found relentlessly inhospitable.
But the Bulls were comfortable 28-14 winners as they consolidated their position of third on the table with a game in hand on leaders Leinster and second-placed Glasgow.
The Lions were also in action in Ireland and they will be disappointed that they could not put away a Munster team that has lost its way. Munster won 17-10 and the Lions at least salvaged a bonus point but this was a missed opportunity.
There was an almighty scrap in Durban where the Sharks were outplayed by the forwards of the Stormers yet somehow scraped over the line for a 21-15 win that could have been a 21-22 defeat had a post-hooter try by Manie Libbok not been chalked off by the TMO because of a knock-on.
Whatever your stance on the game, it was a belter and a classic SA derby. It was the Sharks’ first victory over the Stormers in the URC, in their seventh attempt.
There was little wonder that coach John Plumtree was hugging his assistant coaches in a celebratory dance while John Dobson looked about to head-butt a dent in the lift doors waiting to take him down to the change room.
Best Player — Andre Esterhuizen
I’m going with a Sharks backline player and Makazole Mapimpi and Andre Esterhuizen were outstanding. So, too was young Ethan Hooker, out on the wing instead of his preferred position of centre. He scored a good try and had an even better one disallowed. He is a wonderful prospect and it is good to know that this calibre of player can succeed the likes of Cheslin Kolbe, post-2027.
But I thought Esterhuizen was magnificent. He saved the game for the Sharks because when your pack is beaten, a strong inside centre can give you hope. Esterhuizen did exactly that by taking backward ball and bullying it over the advantage line.
URC team of the weekend: 15 Aphelele Fassi, 14 Canan Moodie, 13 Henco van Wyk, 12 Andre Esterhuizen, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Johan Goosen, 9 Embrose Papier, 8 Siya Kolisi, 7 Vincent Tshituka, 6 Marcell Coetzee, 5 Ruben van Heerden, 4 Gebrandt Grobler, 3 Neethling Fouche, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Ali Vermaak