The Sharks took 78 minutes to take the lead against Ulster in Belfast but all that matters is that they kept that 22-19 lead for the final two minutes to complete a full-house of victories for South African teams in Round 16 of the Vodacom United Rugby Championship. Give them a ‘lekker’ South African thank you, writes Mark Keohane.

Sharks coach John Plumtree would again have aged by a decade.

The Sharks this season have been a mixture of awesome and awful. I have written that too often. But in Belfast it was no different. They were awful for the first 30 minutes and awesome for the final 30.

Some would say they got lucky and they got out of jail for a second successive weekend, but good teams know how to win, even when they are awful for half of the game, and I don’t subscribe to the view they got lucky tonight. They left it late, but they were not lucky to beat an Ulster team that was in free-fall for the final quarter.

What surprised me was it took the Sharks so long in that final quarter to put Ulster away. But they did, and two successive league wins up north, one in Edinburgh and one in Belfast, is all that counts on the league table.

There is so much talent in this Sharks squad, but they only seem to galvanise once two or three scores down. Ulster have struggled this season and were depleted in player availability for this match. That they led 19-0 midway through the first half was rather absurd, given the difference in player quality on either side.

They deserved the lead, just as much as the Sharks deserved the win for the manner in which they finished.

The Sharks win sets up what should be a home quarter-final against the Stormers, who should win both their remaining matches and finish fifth out of 16 teams.

Jurenzo ‘The Boogie Man’ Julius made an impact in the last quarter, Jordan Hendrikse was composed at No 10 and kicked the winning penalty and Ethan Hooker was again a stand out on the wing.

The Sharks forwards, individually and as a unit, were a mixed bag.

Springboks captain Siya Kolisi, leading the Sharks, put in a big 80 minute shift.

The Bulls, after their impressive back-to-back tour wins against Munster and Glasgow, should finish second, as it is unlikely Glasgow will win against Leinster in Dublin in the final league round in three weeks time.

Jan-Hendrik Wessels and Canan Moodie starred for the Bulls and flyhalf Johan Goosen was excellent with the boot.

The Lions were great value for knocking over Connacht, with the latter incapable of emotionally lifting for a second successive weekend in South Africa after their heroic effort against the Stormers a week ago.

Loose-forward and last season’s Currie Cup Player of the Year Renzo du Plessis was the Player of the Match.

South Africa has three teams in the top six and Ireland have just Leinster in the top eight, which some may argue is all they need. But it will be disconcerting for Irish rugby supporters that Munster, Connacht and Ulster all potentially could miss the play-offs.

The URC breaks next weekend for the Investec Champions Cup semi-finals and EPCR Challenge Cup semi-finals.

SA Rugby Mag Sharks winning match overview 

SA Rugby Mag Stormers winning match overview

SA Rugby Mag Lions winning match overview

SA Rugby Mag Bulls winning match overview

Src: keo.co.za