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The Southern Kings produced another gutsy display and held the mighty Sharks tryless as the Durban visitors won this Vodacom Super Rugby encounter 21-12 at the Nelson Mandela Bay stadium in Port Elizabeth. The Sharks led 12-3 at half time.
The Kings had a bonus point in the bag but were denied even that ‘moral victory’ when Patrick Lambie kicked his 6th penalty from right out in front in the final minute to move the Sharks out of that 7-point range. Really, the Kings deserved something out of the game and the 42000 strong crowd even started dreaming of a win with the score at 18-12 and with the Kings on attack in the final ten minutes.
A lack of polish around the fringes killed the Kings, however, and they lost the ball at critical moments. A bit more inventiveness on attack also wouldn’t have hurt. On defence the Southern Kings were magnificent. They made 107 tackles and missed one! The Sharks made 56 tackles and missed four. The Kings attacking edge was lacking, if anything. But its very difficult to be too critical of the home side. This was just their second Super Rugby game ever and they gave the Sharks a serious run for their money.
The two flyhalves were superb. Pat Lambie nailed 6 penalties and a drop goal for the Sharks. Demitri Catrakilis again proved what an asset he has become for the Southern Kings. He nailed four very tough penalties to keep the Kings in the game and this capacity crowd on the edge of their seats. A word for Kings front ranker Schalk Ferreira who stood up to the Beast and the rest of the springbok-laden Sharks pack to win the man of the match award. Doesn’t get any easier for the Kings. Their next game is against the defending champion Chiefs here at the NMB stadium next Friday evening
