Today’s clash between the Cell C Sharks and British & Irish Lions offered the Durban side the opportunity for redemption when they met for the second time in just four days. The B&I Lions winning 71-31 after a red card was awarded against Jaden Hendrikse with 25 minutes to go.
With 25 minutes to go and the score level at 26-26, the Sharks were on the verge of rewriting history. Unfortunately, the red card stopped the Sharks march to one of the biggest surprises of the year.
However, the Sharks showed to the other teams still to face the Lions, exactly how to be competitive and beat the Lions. Unfortunately for the Sharks "what if" does not count.
04:13 Chris Harris scored the Lions first try after a kick from the Sharks could not find touch. The Sharks' defence was unorganised and could not cope with the speed of the attack from the Lions, (00-07).
10:31 Brilliant try for Anthony Volmink after a mistake of the Lions backline. Volmink's speed allowed him to score out wide, (07-07).
14:23 Excellent play from the Sharks as Thaakir Abrahams collect a grubber from Lionel Cronje in the Lions in-goal area, (12-07).
20:29 Captain Jamie George scored the Lions' second try from the back of a maul after a 5m lineout could not be stopped by the Sharks, (12-12).
20:00 The Sharks are looking a lot better and as this match continued they are becoming a lot more confident. However, the Sharks' defence struggled to contain the Lions when they started to attack.
23:51 Jaden Hendrkse intercepts a pass in his own 22m and ran a good 80m for the Sharks' 3rd try. (19-12)
25:52 Duhan vd Merwe score the Lions 3rd try after the Sharks' defence are again found wanting, (19-19).
35:43 Anthony Volmink scored his second try after turnover ball with Thaakir Abrahams picked up a dropped ball of the Lions, (26-19).
38:49 Tadhg Beirne goes straight through a maul to score the Lions 4th try to level the score, (26-26).
Surprisingly the Sharks are still 100% in the game as they surprised the Lions as well as everyone else with the intent shown on attack and defence.
45:32 Jaden Hendrikse received a red card. This will be the end of the Sharks' brilliant effort.
47:20 Jack Conan score from a 5m lineout maul, (26-31).
50:32 Scrambled defence from Sharks could not stop the hard running Elliot Daly, (26-38).
52:20 Reniel Higo stormed down a kick from the Lions which was collected by Werner Kok who scored the Sharks' 5th try, (31-38).
54:31 Jamie George scored after breaking through several tackles, (31-45).
57:59 The Lions rewarded for their patience on the attack as Anthony Watson goes over for his first try of the match, (31-52).
63:50 The 14-man Sharks have no answer for the sustained pressure from the Lions. Tadhg Beirne scored his second try for the lions of the match, (31-59).
66:13 Tom Curry scored the Lions 10th try, (31-66).
75:45 A yellow card against Lions tour captain Conor Murray.
78:26 Anthony Watson score number 11 for the Lions and his second for the match, (31-71).
Scorers:
B&I Lions: Tries: Chris Harris, Jamie George (2), Duhan vd Merwe, Tadhg Beirne (2), Jack Conan, Elliot Daly, Anthony Watson (2), Tom Curry. Conversions: Dan Biggar (8).
Cell C Sharks: Tries: Anthony Volmink, Thaakir Abrahams (2), Jaden Hendrikse, Werner Kok. Conversions: Lionel Cronje (3). Penalty: Lionel Cronje
Cell C Sharks: 15 Anthony Volmink, 14 Marnus Potgieter, 13 Werner Kok, 12 Murray Koster, 11 Thaakir Abrahams, 10 Lionel Cronje, 9 Jaden Hendrikse, 8 Phepsi Buthelezi (captain), 7 Mpilo Gumede, 6 Dylan Richardson, 5 Reniel Hugo, 4 Le Roux Roets, 3 Wiehahn Herbst, 2 Kerron van Vuuren, 1 Ntuthuko Mchunu. Replacements – from: 16 Dan Jooste, 17 MJ Majola, 18 Khutha Mchunu, 19 Thembelani Bholi, 20 Jeandre Labuschagne, 21 Cameron Wright, 22 Boeta Chamberlain, 23 Jeremy Ward, 24 Lourens Adriaanse, 25 Rynhardt Jonker, 26 Curwin Bosch.
British and Irish Lions: 15 Liam Williams, 14 Anthony Watson, 13 Elliot Daly, 12 Chris Harris, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Jack Conan, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Tadhg Beirne, 5 Jonny Hill, 4 Courtney Lawes, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Jamie George (captain), 1 Rory Sutherland. Replacements: 16 Ken Owens, 17 Wyn Jones, 18 Kyle Sinckler, 19 Adam Beard, 20 Sam Simmonds, 21 Tom Curry, 22 Conor Murray, 23 Bundee Aki.