WP edge out Sharks in Durban

Sharks prop Eugene van Staden tries to dispossess Nick Fenton-Wells

Western Province kept their Currie Cup hopes alive when they beat the Sharks 15-10 in Durban on Saturday.

A try in the 78th minute by Dewaldt Duvenhage proved to be the difference between the sides in this match which was a tough physical encounter.

Duvenhage pounced on a mistake by Fredric Michalak who fumbled the ball after taking a heavy hit on the edge of the Sharks' 22 metre line.

WP's scrum-half kicked the loose ball ahead and despite the attentions of Marius Joubert, he held his nerve to gather the ball and dive over the tryline to score.

The hosts tried to fight back and came close to crossing their opponents' tryline in the closing stages, but resilient defending by the visitors kept them at bay.

Earlier, the Sharks got off to a flying start and after an extended period of pressure Springbok flanker Jean Deysel dotted down in the 10th minute.

Meyer Bosman converted and it looked like WP, who fielded an inexperienced side, would struggle for the remainder of this clash.

To their credit the Cape Town-based team fought back and they were rewarded when Danie Poolman scored their opening try in the 29th minute after slipping past four Sharks defenders.

WP fly-half Lionel Cronje converted but he had an off day with the boot and failed to land three further penalty attempts during the half.

With the score level at seven-all at the break, WP continued with their comeback and Duvenhage gave them the lead for the first time when he slotted a penalty in the 61st minute.

Ten minutes later Michalak added a penalty for the home side and with score deadlocked at 10-all, it seemed that the Currie Cup was destined to have its second draw of the round.

However, Duvenhage had other plans and sealed the win for the visitors with his fine individual effort.

The Sharks will be kicking themselves as a win would have narrowed the gap on the table-topping Lions.

After 12 matches, the Lions have 45 points while the Sharks are still in second position with 38 points.

The win has brought WP back into contention, although they are still in fourth spot with 36 points.

The scorers:

For Sharks:
Try: Deysel
Con: Bosman
Pen: Michalak

For Western Province:
Tries: Poolman, Duvenhage
Con: Cronje
Pen: Duvenhage

Sharks: 15 Stefan Terblanche, 14 Sibusiso Sithole, 13 Adrian Jacobs, 12 Marius Joubert, 11 Lwazi Mvovo, 10 Meyer Bosman, 9 Charl McLeod, 8 Keegan Daniel (c), 7 Jean Deysel, 6 Jacques Botes, 5 Ross Skeate, 4 Anton Bresler, 3 Eugene van Staden, 2 Kyle Cooper, 1 Dale Chadwick.
Replacements: 16 Monde Hadebe, 17 Wiehahn Herbst, 18 Jan Andre Marais, 19 Marcell Coetzee, 20 Conrad Hoffmann, 21 Jacques-Louis Potgieter, 22 Frederic Michalak.

Western Province: 15 Heinrich Steyl, 14 Danie Poolman, 13 Berton Klaasen, 12 Marcel Brache, 11 JJ Engelbrecht, 10 Lionel Cronje, 9 Dewaldt Duvenage, 8 Nizaam Carr, 7 Siya Kolisi, 6 Nick Fenton-Wells, 5 De Kock Steenkamp, 4 Adriaan Fondse, 3 Brok Harris, 2 Tiaan Liebenberg (c), 1 JC Kritzinger.
Replacements: 16 Deon Fourie, 17 Frans Malherbe, 18 Tertius Daniller, 19 Nick Koster /Pieter Louw, 20 Louis Schreuder, 21 Johann Sadie, 22 Conrad Jantjes.

Referee: Mark Lawrence