The Sharks romped to a 53-0 bonus point Super Rugby victory over the Southern Kings at Kings Park in Durban.
The Sharks outscored the Southern Kings by eight tries to none in the match and Sharks captain Patrick Lambie and Paul Jordaan both scored two tries each in the match.
The result moves the Sharks to 35 points and just two behind the Lions who lead the Africa 2 Conference.
The result is the Sharks seventh win from 12 matches and the Kings 1oth loss from 11 matches. The Sharks 53 point score takes the Kings points against tally to over 500 and their points differential to -315.
The Sharks scored six tries in the first half to take a 43-0 lead into the halftime break, before adding another two tries in the second half to record a bonus-point victory over their neighbours from the Eastern Cape.
Lambie scored the first of his two tries in the eighth minute when the Sharks broke down field after turning over the Kings’ possession deep in their own half. Sharks centre Paul Jordaan made the final pass when he popped the ball to Lambie to go over the line.
The Kings were under immense pressure at scrum time, and they gave away two consecutive penalties in the 13th minute that led to a comfortable shot at goal for Lambie, who made it 8-0 for the home side.
The Kings came close in the 17th minute when they went through a plethora of phases on the Sharks’ goalline. However, the home side’s defence was too good, and big Sharks centre Andre Esterhuizen managed to turn the ball over.
Lambie then managed to pick the loose ball before sprinting clear. He then found Jordaan in support to go over for the Sharks’ second try in the 18th minute. Two minutes later their fullback Willie le Roux finished off a great team try that he started in his own half.
Jordaan then scored his second try straight from the restart after great interplay with loose forward Keegan Daniel to make it 27-0 for the Sharks.
At this stage of the match the Kings were staring down the barrel. And they conceded two more tries before the break, when Le Roux put big centre Esterhuizen into a gap, before veteran wing JP Pietersen scored a try in the right corner.
Lambie completed his brace of tries with in the 48th minute after another mistake from the Kings in the Sharks’ 22. This time Pietersen kicked the ball ahead, and the ball bounced straight into Lambie’s arms before the Springbok flyhalf raced through to score in the corner.
Sharks coach Gary Gold cleared his bench after that try, and the home side didn’t quite have the same fluidity that they had prior to Lambie’s try. But they still managed to keep the hapless Kings scoreless.
The Sharks, though, did bring up their half-century in the 76th minute when replacement prop Thomas du Toit crashed over the line after a quick tap from another scrum penalty.
Next week the Southern Kings host Argentina’s Jaguares in Port Elizabeth on Friday while the Sharks have a bye so they return in six weeks time against the Lions on July the 2nd.
Final Score Sharks 53 (43) Southern Kings 0 (0)
Scorers
Sharks
Tries – P.Lambie 2, P.Jordaan 2, W.le Roux, A.Esterhuizen, JP.Pietersen, T. du Toit
Pen – P.Lambie
Con – P.Lambie 5
Drop –
Cards –
Southern Kings
Tries –
Pen –
Con –
Drop –
Cards –
Match Officials
Referee: Quinton Immelman
Assistant Ref 1:Rodney Bonaparte
Assistant Ref 2:Archie Sehlako
TMO :Marius Jonker
Teams
Sharks
15. Willie le Roux , 14. JP Pietersen , 13. Paul Jordaan , 12. Andre Esterhuizen , 11. Lwazi Mvovo , 10. Patrick Lambie (C) , 9. Michael Claassens , 8. Daniel du Preez , 7. Jean-Luc du Preez , 6. Keegan Daniel , 5. Stephan Lewies , 4. Etienne Oosthuizen , 3. Lourens Adriaanse , 2. Chiliboy Ralepelle , 1. Dale Chadwick
Replacements: 16. Kyle Cooper , 17. Juan Schoeman , 18. Thomas du Toit , 19. Giant Mtyanda , 20. Tera Mtembu , 21. Stefan Ungerer , 22. Garth April , 23. Odwa Ndungane
Southern Kings
15. Jurgen Visser , 14. Lukhanyo Am , 13. JP du Plessis , 12. Shane Gates (VC) , 11. Luzuko Vulindlu , 10. Louis Fouche , 09. Ntando Kebe , 08. Aidon Davis , 07. Thembelani Bholi , 06. Stefan Willemse , 05. Schalk Oelofse , 04. Steven Sykes (C) , 03. Jacobie Adriaanse , 02. Martin Ferreira , 01. Schalk Ferreira
Replacements : 16. Martin Bezuidenhout , 17. Justin Ackerman , 18. Tom Botha , 19. JC Astle , 20. Jacques Engelbrecht , 21. Kevin Luiters , 22. Elgar Watts , 23. Jaco van Tonder
