| Sharks (0) |
| Cardiff (23) 35 |
| Tries: Penalty try, Young 2, Thomas Cons: Evans 2 Pens: Evans 3 |
Cardiff was the first Welsh region in South Africa to win since the expansion of the United Rugby Championship with a bonus point victory at Sharks.
Thomas Young, the Durban flanker, scored a penalty attempt in the rain-soaked first period.
Young was still the star of the show after the break. He scored from a driving maul, before Ben Thomas added a fourth.
Sharks’ day was summarized when Francois Venter arrived at the airport, only to be refused a review by TMO.
Jarrod Evans, Cardiff’s flyhalf, was at the core of Cardiff’s performance. He made a couple of mistakes in handling and finished with five kicks from seven. His tactical kicking, distribution, and handling were also outstanding.
Cardiff managed the tough conditions better than their hosts. They won the breakdown in a show that will leave director of rugby Dai Young baffled.
Cardiff was without 11 players because of injuries and Wales duty. Taulupe Faletau and Tomos Williams were not available for Cardiff.
International calls were also used to trim sharks, with Jaden Hendrikse and Makazole Mapimpi as well as Thomas du Toit, Eben Etzebeths, Siya Kolisi and Bongi Mbonambi all on tour with Springboks.
Cardiff started the day with two points and two places in front of Sharks in the URC tables in seventh. But, having played two more games, the result elevates them to sixth and South Africa to 12th.
Cardiff was able to get in front with an Evans penalty early, at Kings Park which is soggy and sparsely populated.
Evans dropped a greasy highball and Cardiff infringed at the ruck. Sharks took advantage of the situation, and kicked the penalty to attack the lineout.
As Sharks moved towards their try line, the visitors were under threat. Josh Turnbull made a crunching tackle to get the ball over the ruck and earned a resolving penalty.
Referee Frank Murphy soon punished the skipper for his clash with Anthony Volmink, who was trying to tackle the Sharks fullback.
Cardiff managed to weather the loss of their captain by moving possession around the fringes, and kick intelligently as the conditions got worse.
Sharks attempted to run out the ball from their 22 but Cardiff defenders allowed them to do so again. Prop Dmitri arhip earned a penalty that Evans could use to double the lead.
Turnbull’s departure coincided with that of Sharks’ Marnus Potter to the sinbin.
To stop Thomas Young, son and boss of boss Dai, from kicking down his grubber kick in goal, the wing stopped the ball. He also gave up a penalty attempt.
In conditions that were not conducive to expansive rugby, the Sharks tried to find a way out of trouble. Cardiff also continued to set traps at the breakdown.
This time, Centre Rey Lee Lo was the player on the jackal. Evans received a third penalty kick at goal which extended the Welsh lead to 16-0.
Sharks were at sea and sent a second attempt before half-time. This was another scrappy break that saw the ball squirt and be hacked by a Cardiff foot.
Volmink returned to cover, but he spilled it as he looked around. Lloyd Williams flicked back the ball for Young to score in left corner. Evans maintained his 100% record and slotted the tricky conversion.
Young was the one to gain his second match win thanks to a dominant driving maul.
Evans created the bonus-point attempt with his delayed pass, sending full-back Thomas to Thomas’ line. He then added the conversion to make Cardiff’s lead an eye-catching 35-0 in less than an hour.
Sharks thought that they had reached the scoreboard when Venter got a ricochet under the posts. But, after Venter’s late intervention, the try was deemed an accidental offside.
Evans missed a goal in South Africa’s continued leakage of penalties. However, it did not matter as the Sharks were so far adrift and had become the first South African team to allow a Welsh win.
Sharks: Anthony Volmink; Marnus Potgieter, Francois Venter, Rohan Janse van Rensburg, Werner Kok; Boeta Chamberlain, Cameron Wright; Dian Bleuler, Kerron van Vuuren, Carlü Sadie, Justin Basson, Gerbrandt Grobler, James Venter (capt), Vincent Tshituka, Sikhumbuzo Notshe.
Alternatives: Dan Jooste, Khwezi Mona, Khutha Mchunu, Hyron Andrews, Phepsi Buthelezi, Bradley Davids, Lionel Cronje, Ben Tapuai.
Cardiff Rugby Ben Thomas; Jason Harries, Rey Lee-Lo, Max Llewellyn, Theo Cabango; Jarrod Evans, Lloyd Williams; Rhys Carré, Liam Belcher, Dmitri Arhip, Lopeti Timani, Rory Thornton, Josh Turnbull (capt), Thomas Young, James Botham.
Replacements: Kristian Dacy, Corey Domachowski and Will Davies King, Seb Davies-King, Seb Davies and Gwilym Bracey, James Ratti, Ellis Bevan and Mason Grady.
Referee: Frank Murphy (IRFU).
Assistant referees: Aimee Barrett-Theron & Stephan Geldenhuys (SARU)
TMO: Eoghan Cross, IRFU