Sharks tame Hurricanes

SYDNEY – South Africa’s Coastal Sharks maintained a three-point buffer at the top of rugby’s Super 14 competition with a come-from-behind victory over New Zealand’s Wellington Hurricanes this weekend.

The Sharks scored three second-half tries to turn around a 9-10 halftime deficit to down the Hurricanes 33-17 in Durban and lead the southern hemisphere provincial series on 30 points.
The Waikato Chiefs and New South Wales Waratahs are next on 27.
The Chiefs surged home on the back of a four-try burst to salvage a 36-29 win over South Africa’s Golden Lions at home after trailing 10-29 with 20 minutes left.
But in stark contrast, the Waratahs ground out an ugly 12-6 win over the determined Western Stormers in Sydney to keep on track for next month’s playoffs.
The 2007 champions, Northern Bulls, hold down fourth spot after gleaning a bonus point from their 16-13 loss to the improving Canterbury Crusaders in Christchurch.
The seven-time champion Crusaders have moved to fifth place, one point adrift of the Bulls with six rounds left to the semi-finals.
The Hurricanes dropped a slot to sixth after their loss to the Sharks, two points ahead of the Otago Highlanders, ACT Brumbies and Auckland Blues.
Canberra’s Brumbies ended a troubled South African tour on a high with a 40-27 victory over bottom team Central Cheetahs in Bloemfontein, while the Highlanders and Blues had the weekend off.
The Western Force kept alive their outside finals’ hopes with a crushing 39-7 win over the Queensland Reds in the Australian derby in Perth and are six points out of the top four.
The Sharks took control of their match in the second half with three tries after they were restricted to just three penalties in the first term.
The Chiefs looked dead and buried midway through the second half of their fluctuating home match before winger Dwayne Sweeney, who ended the game with a hat-trick of tries, sparked a revival.
The Crusaders continued their mid-season revival as they inflicted a second successive defeat over the Bulls at home.
The defending champions have been running hot and cold this season and were a mixture of both against the Bulls, with a strong opening 30 minutes which then deteriorated as the match progressed.
When the Bulls fought back from 5-13 down to level at 13-all the game seemed to be slipping from their grasp, until Stephen Brett regained the lead with a penalty which the Crusaders defended desperately over the final 15 minutes. The Brumbies leave South Africa with a win after losing to the Lions and Sharks and forward Shawn Mackay seriously injured after being hit by a car in Durban earlier in the week.
– Nampa-AFP