Vodacom Stormers laud Sharks

Captain Luke Watson, a former Sharks star, said the Sharks performed really well. “They came out and played territorially and they pinned us back in our half. They managed to turn us over and put points on the board early on.

“These local derbies are tough, but it was only a matter of execution on our side and precision on attack. I thought defensively we showed intensity and guts, but we left one or two little gaps around the flyhalf area – which was a channel they attacked quite a bit.”

Coach Kobus van der Merwe agreed with his leader:” I think those two first tries took us a bit by surprise, but you must give credit to the Sharks. They came out under a lot of pressure and they played well. We had a lot of opportunities.

” I think it was a bloody good game of rugby, if you look at it in perspective. We must look at our execution. We had ten opportunities in their 22 and we didn’t score. A lot of passes didn’t go to hand when we had men over.

“Maybe the score is not a true reflection of the intensity in the game, but then again credit to them. They really came out and played superbly.”

Van der Merwe proclaimed him satisfied with the last part of the Stormers’ campaign. He said he thought the team performed well at home. “We got it right since the tour. In the Highlanders game we didn’t stick to the structures very well.

“There was a lot of individuality out there, but not a lot of cohesion in terms of the team. After that we got it right and we put some good performances together. It’s been a great home run for us and just heads off to the people who supported us.

“Tonight was a fantastic crowd. It was the largest ever crowed to support a Super rugby match and they got value for their money. They saw a lot of class from both teams and I think in terms of the home leg we played some exciting rugby.”