The Sharks overcame a poor first half, which saw them trail against the Cheetahs by 3-13 at half time, to record a 20-13 victory that seals their place in next weekend’s Currie Cup Final.
In a nightmare start, the Sharks played right into the Cheetahs hands by trying to move the ball around on a day when their execution simply wasn’t up to scratch. An early collision between Fred Michalak and Stefan Terblanche saw the former hurt and the Frenchman was clearly off his game before going off about 15 minutes later. In that time, the boot of 19-year-old Johan Goosen saw the visitors take a 6-0 lead, with Michalak and Lambie between them missing three simple shots at goal.
It was Goosen who broke things wide open halfway through the half as he cantered upfield. Sustained Cheetahs pressure in the 22 eventually saw fullback Hennie Daniller stroll over for the opening try, which Goosen duly converted to put the Cheetahs 13-0 ahead, with all the ball and all the momentum.
The Sharks started to look better once Lambie moved to flyhalf and they started to play a tighter game and were twice denied tries by the TMO towards the end of the first 40, before Lambie eventually got points on the board through a penalty.
A sustained period of Sharks dominance in the opening 15 minutes of the second half saw the Sharks finally rest the momentum – along with the lead, as first Beast Mtawarira and then Odwa Ndungane crossed for tries – Lambie’s conversions seeing the home side eventually move out to a 17-13 lead with around 20 to play. The Cheetahs, while keen to throw everything into the game, found themselves battling for cohesion and accuracy in the final quarter and failed to score any further points, despite being on attack for a good quarter of an hour. The final say belonged to the Sharks, though, with Lambie’s second penalty putting them 7 points clear – and into the final.
Scores
Sharks (20): Tries Beast Mtawarira, Odwa Ndungane. Converions Pat Lambie (2). Penalties Lambie (2)
Cheetahs (13): Try Hennie Daniller. Conversion Johan Goosen. Penalties Goosen (2)
i hope the flyhalf / fullback debate is closed now.
Just how pathetic!!!!
We all now Bismarck and Alberts are the strongest men in world rugby right??? Then who is the idiot who forgot to tell the Cheetahs that you are under no circumstance allowed to tackle them back and have the rest of the Sharks behave like pansies!!
Also Mr Plumtree, please keep hold of that one or two floating grey cells, go and thank Mr and Mrs Lambie for supplying you with a match winning player on 10 and keep him there.
Sheezzzz!!!!!!
congrats boys! now 4 a province victory, and home final at the shark tank!
lambie def needs to start at 10
Congrats boys!! The scoreboard at this stage is all that matters!!
great heart to win that one after we looked dead half an hour in
I concur. Lambs moving to 10 made a vast difference! Well done kiddo!
Must say Keegs was on fire!
@robdylan (Comment 6) : I agree…champion teams do these kinda things..
If the Sharks play as a team like they should ( and can
), they will be unstoppable. Why then the perception that they do not have to do just that all the time.
Still, I am proud of the fact that they did show enough character to pull it through in the second half.
Lambie at 10 to win the CC for us and then win the SARU Player of the Year for himself.
Nominees.
Schalk Burger, Bismarck du Plessis, Francois Hougaard, Pat Lambie and Victor Matfield
Well, again Lambie proofs why you can’t even consider playing him anywhere but flyhalf. Brilliant game!
Well done Sharkies, what a turnaround.
just watching the next game. Wondering how the de villiers and fourie combo will match up to our tried and tested centers.
@Ice Ice Bokkie (Comment 7) : I think Keegan had a bad first half, but definitely turned it on in the second.
And Stef continues to show why he can be 36 and still making the Sharks 15. Specifically on defense he had a great game.
@Letgo (Comment 13) : To me the game only started in the 2nd! So from there on I am making comments!
@Ice Ice Bokkie (Comment 7) : i think he must thank Oupa Stef. He made Freddie feel not too lekker
To all you Lambie doubting Toms out there… I hate it when I’m right.
@SharonvanWyk (Comment 16) : Yeah Shaz! On behalf of the Club Patr1Ok Lambie, please get your typing fingers busy.
@SharonvanWyk (Comment 16) : Shazie, with all due respect – no one is doubting Lambie’s ability as far as I know. If Fred was on fire, it would have been a different ball game…Lambie can be oustanding at 10 or 15, unfortunately Fred can only be good at 10…so it was the correct thing to do to choose Lambs @ 15 and even more correct thing for Stef to take Fred out so Lambs can move to 10!
I havnt read the article or other comments ,just want to say I think SharonvanWyk may have had a point about Lambie being the starter at 10 ,jee Michalak has lost it! The diference was so obvious today …
@SharonvanWyk (Comment 16) : No one doubted lambie though…
Sharks need to fix up general play ,focus on basics of general play…
And we are in the dwang with our midfield ,big time …
Jordaan ,Lindeque and Prinsloo will have to be blooded next super rugby season…in a baptism of fire.
Well done Sharks. Good come back.
Agree with everyone here that Lambie made a huge difference playing at fh. Now we need to play him there all of the time and not some of the time. Saffa players first. Freddie can sit on the bench. Freddie one week is brilliant then the next just awful can’t have inconsistency at fh. That position has to be Lambies. Pat is always consistent, whether it is at fb or fh. His best position is fh so let us keep playing him there.
Though for the Boks there will be a scramble for that position. Goosen, Jantjies and Lambie are all playing very well there. If we keep Pat there he will get better, mess him about playing him in all positions, the next coach not gonna take notice of him at fh. PLUM just keep Lambie at fh now.
Also his kicking at posts was forgiven. Lambie never took the kicking while with the Boks, so really has not kicked for posts for awhile now. He has to take them all the time now and he will once again be consistent with the goal kicking.
Our centres are a worry, Plum needs to really bring in the youngsters early next year, otherwise we in trouble for SuperRugby.
Anyhow well done to our Sharks. Now hope we can beat the Lions next week. They played well against Province tonight and deserve to hold the final.
Altitude is always a bugger for coastal teams, just hope we handle it like we did against the Bulls at Loftus, beating them and into the play offs of SuperRugby.
To all the Shark supporters living up in Joburg please get to the game and support our boys. See Ashwin asking all the Bull supporters to go to the game to support the Lions. So we need plenty Sharks supporters going next week.
Next week, the Sharks are superior to the Lions in every aspect of the game, all the Lions have is a better centre pairing and a great attacking FB, the Sharks should win this one but so should have WP, go Lions
The Lions punched well above their weight, Minnie, Rhodes and Strauss kept the highly rated WP loose trio a bay, the Lions centre’s did get the better of JdV, JF and JdJ while Deon van Rensburg had an immense game on defense, Taute and Jantjies again showed that they are the Lions future while Killian just keeps getting better and better. Wickus showed us why he is a World Cup gold medal winner and the Sharks should kick them selfs for letting go of Patrick Cilliers
The Lions played the final in 1999 and 2007, France beat NZ in 1999 and 2007? I wonder
@Mutley (Comment 24) :
No tragedy for the Sharks letting Cilliers go – we have Beast (and van Staden as 1/3 cover).
Its better for SA that Cilliers has a starting position that sitting way down the pecking order at the Sharks.
@Mutley (Comment 24) : Deon van Rensburg has turned out to be an unsung hero. Good on him for the gutsy performance today.
The nominees for Currie Cup player of the year are going to be interesting. What do you think of Elton, Derick M and Josh beiong contenders for that 6-man shortlist.
Missed the game due to other commitments but followed along on the Sharksworld thread. Thanks to everyone posting there for the blow by blow commentary – it’s the next best thing when you can’t watch the game.
Hopefully Lambie’s performance today cements his place as starting 10 in next year’s S15 but you just never know with Plum.
Zurich-London-Dubai-JHB here I come
Well done to the Sharks for not lying down when a lot of teams would have. Good luck for next week. I couldnt watch because Eskom decided to cut my area’s power for 11hours and on top of that MTN decided that I should have extremely weal signal so I couldnt even follow on SW. Next weekend I’m working, so I wont be able to watch again.
I think the 6 players that should compete for Currie Cup player of the year is
1. Elton Jantjies
2. Joshua Strauss
3. Derrick Minnie
4. Jaco Taute
5. Johan Sadie
6. Freddie Michelak
@Mutley (Comment 32) : If the Media have any say in the matter it will be Johan Goosen.
@Letgo (Comment 11) : All Lambie Proved last night was that he was very valuable (vital maybe) to have on the field if your other flyhalf needs to go off. We can’t say that Lambie HAS to play FH though.
I think Lambie is much better than Michalak on Michalak’s current form but let’s not forget there is a looooong season starting in Feb and we will need both of them
At some point in the game yesterday, our forwards thought: “Crikey, but our backs are cr*p, we’re gonna have to win this thing ourselves.” Good on them (and Keegan Daniel in particular) for changing the gameplan.
@SharonvanWyk (Comment 16) :
@beet (Comment 17) :
See my previous comment.
We can’t start with Lambie at 10 at the moment, who will start at 15?
Having him and Michalak on the pitch is an awesome advantage that we have and I’m liking the way it’s working.
Michalak had an indifferent game but he got a knock EARLY on and was not himself. It is such a good feeling that we have 2 great flyhalves. On this day one faltered and the other stepped up. On another day Lambie might falter and Michalak will step up. It will be a rare occurence when they both falter but it will happen.
While on the subject of Michalak taking a knock. That is why I believe Lambie took our 1st kick at goal, as Michalak was having treatment, with Michalak resuming the kicking duties afterwards. NOT as the commentators tried to lead us to believe that Lambie was taken off kicking duty after his 1st missed attempt. He was standing in for Michalak on the 1st kick, Michalak wasn’t replacing Lambie at the 2nd kick.
Commentators can be so cluesless sometimes.
@Mutley (Comment 32) : all lions players?what about Ross Skeate?
@CapeShark (Comment 35) :
@ ‘Crikey’
@KSA Shark © (Comment 36) : lets face it..when both guys are on form not many teams are gonna stop us..its nice to know that we can play both of them though..but in saying that i do hope next year we see some change in our backs..
@JarsonX (Comment 38) : yeah, gotta respect the family language on this site…
@Shaniboi
Can you honestly say one of them doesn’t deserve it
@KSA Shark © (Comment 36) : “Michalak had an indifferent game but he got a knock EARLY on and was not himself”, I thought he was going off to try and catch the early flight back to France…
Seriously though, let’s hope next game is Stef’s last. Can’t have him missing tackles and colliding with our own players like that.
@Mutley (Comment 32) : HaHaHa no…
Derick Minnie*
Ross Skeate*
Elton Jantjies*
Jean Deysel*
Johan Goosen*
Dimtitri Catrikillis*
Oom Rob, can we pleeease hand over the choker’s tag to WP now?
@vanmartin (Comment 44) : lets first win the currie cup..then we can haha..
Let’s nominate the CC player of the season, but there is one stipulation.
You may not nominate a player from the union you support.
There will be no Skeate, no Taute and no Michalak.
@KSA Shark © (Comment 46) : Oh and you have to have played at least half the games of the season.
Will Deysel still be there then?
@KSA Shark
Ok then I nominate Johan Sadie from WP
@shaniboi (Comment 45) : I think we’ve done enough to be honest. We went in as favourites, got more than we bargained for in the first half but showed some determination and fought back. WP’s record in crunch games has not been stellar.
@KSA Shark © (Comment 47) : Elton Jantjies or Josh Strauss. Not sure how much they played but I enjoyed the Lions games that I could catch featuring these two.
@Mutley (Comment 48) :
@vanmartin (Comment 50) :
Agreed with all three those.
Catrikilis and Minnie are two I would add as nominees, but I’d give the award to Josh Strauss.
@KSA Shark © (Comment 36) : That frustrated the hell out of me! Idiots!
Odwa played so well at fullback when Lambie moved to fly-half. I wish Freddie had more game time at scrum-half, although Hoffman is playing well. In my opinion, from the four five or so fullbacks in our squad, odwa is either one or two.
Well, we made it!
Would Fred be fit for the final?
Anyone remember the fairytale ending last year..where the springbok laden team came to durbs to play a team full of guts n passion..lets hope that fairytale doesnt happen again…
When Fred arrived this season you could see the difference in our backline when Lambie was 10,Lambie will just become better with Fred near.
@vanmartin (Comment 49) : got more than we bargained for in the first half
Eish…
@Silver Fox (Comment 57) : Got more of a fight than we bargained for from the Cheetahs
@KSA Shark © (Comment 34) : I can say it. Lambie has to play at Flyhalf!
@KSA Shark © (Comment 34) : I agree that it is good to have 2 good flyhalfs in a long season, but I think Lambie should be the one starting and Fred the one backing up. In fact Bosman is a decent flyhalf 2, so we’ll have double cover for him.
And we also have enough at 15. Ludik, Viljoen, Odwa and hopefully prinsloo will also be given some game time.
I don’t see why we need to add Lambie to that list.
Don’t you agree that he will add more value for us at 10… or I am also a strong believer of letting a young 10, learn some tricks at 12 next to a more exprerienced 10?
@KSA Shark © (Comment 36) : You’re right about the kicking. Fred was always going to take the kicks. He’s been kicking at 80% this season.
I’d love to see Adi Start the game. So Stefan can play 15, or Odwa, who I thought did a great job when he moved there in the semi’s.
@Letgo (Comment 61) : I’d just like to make clear, that just because I prefer Lambie at 15, doesn’t mean I feel Fred at 10 is a bad option. Especially not for this last game.
Continuity is a good thing and Fred has done well for us. If he is selected at 10 again this weekend (which I believe he will be) I will back him and the team 100%.
Just one more thing on Lambie, I promise.
Everyone here knows that I’m one of the Lambie cheerleaders on this site, after Shaz maybe the loudest. So maybe when I say something about him, not many of you take it seriously anymore, but someone at the game has to back me on this one.
When Lambie moved to Flyhalf, what he did on camera was impressive, but not as impressive as what he did when the camera was not rolling, or not focused on him. Right away he started making the calls and keeping the players organised. On defence, but more specifically on attack. With both our tries, Lambie was the decision maker.
With the first try we had a line-out that was collapsed just over 5m away. Hoffman wanted to pass to Lambie right away, but there was nothing on. He calmed the play down. Called the forwards out into position and set up a forwards play.
Maybe I just notice these things about him, because I’m watching him more closely, but he definitely did organize our attacks. When players were just standing around he would direct them into spaces, so that the ball could go to them and only come back to him when there is space for the backs.
I seriously haven’t seen any of this from Fred all season. He has been great, individually at times, but I don’t think he gives direction to the team like Lambie does.
Did anyone who was at the game, notice this, to back me up?
Just watch him closely next time you have a chance to see him at Flyhalf at a live game. There’s a reason why the team looked better when he stepped up to the flyhalf position, it’s not just coincidence.
@Letgo (Comment 62) : I said I prefer Lambie at 15…that didn’t come out right. 10
@Letgo (Comment 63) : Maybe you must set-up a camera at the match just focusing on Lambie…
@KSA Shark © (Comment 36) : I think the hypothetical that has to be answered is what if at the start of the 2012 season, Michalak, Bosman and Viljoen are all in top form, what do you then do with Lambie?
a)10
b)15
c)12
d)bench
I might be wrong but the current line of thinking suggests that he should be on the bench coz we have all the other positions covered on the field but we don’t have a great reserve to cover these positions.
This season is the short term. However the Sharks must decide for the long run, do they want a foreigner who maybe brings it every other match and will in all likelihood be gone come the end of the SR season. OR do they want to invest in a world class homegrown youngster who has seldom if ever let the team down.
Attention also has to be given to postion of 10 vs 15. I’m going to controversially suggest that altho all positions on a rugby field are important, they don’t all hold the same weighting. Anyone who thinks the position of fullback is as valuable as that of flyhalf is delusional.
@beet (Comment 66) : 10 = General…
@Charlie (Comment 65) : Don’t give me ideas. I’ll do it. I have to convince people of his brilliance somehow!!!
@Letgo (Comment 68) :
Pat in 3D… 
@Charlie (Comment 67) : I also don’t necessarily think we need to use Fred in the match 15 for every game to utilise him the best we can for next season. It’s not a bad thing to have a guy like that on your bench, or ready to step into the starting 15 if someone gets injured. Give him a start every now and then to keep him sharp, but start with the players and the team that you can build around on the long term.
We don’t want to have to find another brilliant Flyhalf, because Lambie had decided that his only position is 15.
Worst 2 rugby months of my life.
Springboks get screwed over by Keith (the man who sent e-mails about those ‘japies), his son Bryce & the mastermind Paddy O’Brien.
Then Province forward pack can’t do jack, which isn’t a surprise, but I’d have expected them to get the job done regardless.
And then France come oh so close, and miss out by an ankle tap and a penalty that missed by centimetres. The difference between many of those All Blacks being thought of as ‘greats’ or flops. That French loss was almost as gutting as the Boks loss. Nobody gave them a chance, and they really should’ve won… if only luck went their way.
That being said, I still don’t see why a team like the French, who aren’t going to score tries from halfway, still try to play rugby in those positions. That’s where SA had it right. Launch up-and-unders or use your forwards – so you can secure the ball easily. It was dumb rugby that they got away with.
Anyone on here play Fox Sports fantasy rugby? I played the first time this World Cup, but will start a group for the 2012 Super Rugby season.
@beet (Comment 66) : The Flyhalf position is even more important in South Africa, since we’ve always struggled to produce match winners in this position. When you have one that shows the potential, you have to treasure it for the rarity it is.
Even if Lambie was a little better at 15, we can’t afford to throw away the endangered specie of South African rugby, a good 10.
@hendrikp (Comment 71) : I’ve played it and will join your group next season.
Morning all! I think lambie was outstanding! Why was the much loved Goosen replaced second half? Overshadowed by lambie or dit the sharks make him their bitch?
@hendrikp (Comment 71) : I was behind the French all the way. Piri’s ankle tap was brill tho.
I’m hoping Ma’a is named as iRB player of the year today. I think he truly deserves to take his place amongst the greats.
Province were not as bad as people are making out. If Nic Groom didn’t throw that pass to Killian, things could have turned out differently. However I must say that I pondered over this yesterday: after being in praise of WP/Stormers for almost the whole year over the manner in which they have gone about developing their youngsters into competent top level players, whether or not, their season as a whole can be regarded as successful as 2010 or at the very least a step in the right direction. I wasn’t sure.
@Letgo (Comment 63) :
I really believe that pat lambie is the future at flyhalf for the Sharks and the Boks and he should be given an extended run there in next year’s S15.
Last year I said that lambie should be the starting flyhalf at the WC as i didn’t believe that Morne Steyn had what it took to get the Bok backline going. I was told that the Boks could not afford to start with anyone else but Steyn at flyhalf, as kicks win World Cups. Well we all know how that turned out. I truly believe that with Lambie at 10 the Boks would have beaten the Ozzies in the Quarters, even with Bryce Lawrence blowing like he did, or perhaps, especially with Bryce Lawrence blowing like he did.
@mbay-shark (Comment 74) : sorry meant “did” not dit
@Letgo (Comment 72) : I also wanted to add that the Sharks are scraping the barrel for leadership at the moment. That’s probably why you didn’t hear Dave McLeod make any unusual announcements or see Stef doing a lap of honour after what could have been his last home game. I suspect that the only issue keeping him in the picture for next season is the captaincy questionmark.
This is all the more reason to get Lambie settled at 10 imho. He is probably the best option to become Smit’s long term successor. Maybe not right now but certainly in a season or so.
@Letgo (Comment 73) :
Be warned. I’ll draft Coenie into my team soon as he’s fit
@beet (Comment 75) :
I really think Kaino deserves it. They’ve just started the IRB awards over here. Not sure if they’re showing it in SA?
I’d call the season for WP average. Not a success because what depth has really been developed? Haven’t exactly brought through players I would deem starters…
Think the World Cup has proven how important breakdowns are. All the SA teams need a lot of work in that part of the game.
@beet (Comment 78) : Is it just me or does Keegan’s decision sometimes tend to go on what Bismark decides?
@jonnow (Comment 76) :
Morne was not the reason we lost, so you can’t say “it should have been Lambie”.
I’ll always think that we had one heck of a good team that could’ve won, had the breakdown laws been enforced. Nothing will change my mind about that.
The future though? I’d like to see Lambie play a lot of 10 for the Sharks. The more he plays there, the better he would be. It’d be a nice duel for the Bok 10 jersey between him and Goosen.
@Letgo (Comment 62) : Freudian slip.
@beet (Comment 66) :
You’d play Viljoen ahead of Lambie? 
@hendrikp (Comment 81) :
I see Gerhard van der Heever just signed for WP.
@hendrikp (Comment 79) : I have a feeling it will be Pocock or the volKaino. I know it’s an award given for test performances in a single season but Nonu has produced the goods over a long period of time, that’s why he’s my favourite. I’m also wondering how much longer Kaino has left as an AB starter. If he wins, I think he’ll be the first player to win the junior and senior awards.
Any news on Graeme Henry’s future plans.
@hendrikp (Comment 81) :
Not so sure I agree that Morne is not the reason we lost.
When we were camped in the Ozz 22 and couldn’t penetrate despite having all the possession, I reckon that a playmaker like Lambie would have offered far more than Steyn. Having said that, i am not saying Steyn was terrible or anything, just don’t think he has what it takes to win the WC.
@hendrikp (Comment 81) : Agreed. Two quality flyhalves is a really nice problem to have.
@KSA Shark © (Comment 83) : read it again. I’m just asking the question based on the common reasoning for having Michalak ahead of Lambie at 10 presently.
@Pokkel (Comment 84) : I suspect he’s in search of more game time and with Sadie and Engelbrecht coming north it’s probably the right option.
@jonnow (Comment 76) : Steyn played well during this World cup, I think other things contributed more than him being at 10. I would have loved it if the Bok coaches had the guts to get Lambie ready for the 10 role in the World Cup during the 2010 End of year tour and this year’s tri-nations, but even though I think Lambie is brilliant, I don’t think, even he, would have been able to turn that quarters in our favour. So many things went against us that I was almost glad he wasn’t the one that had to be up against it in that match.
I’m proud of the way he handled himself at the back, most of the players can be really proud, it just wasn’t our time. Maybe next time we’ll have sorted certain, I call them “rugby glitches” out, so that we will be rewarded with the good play we produce.
@jonnow (Comment 76) : I just don;’t think it’s fair to put anything on just one player, when the team played so well as a unit. I don’t think any one player caused the loss and I don’t think any one player could have prevented it.
@Letgo (Comment 91) : Agreed. Even Danie Rossouw shouldn’t beat himself up about that last penalty. He had a really good tournament.
@beet (Comment 78) : who’s Dave McLeod?
@robdylan (Comment 93) : what’s that stadium announcers name again. I should have just called him Richard’s bff.
@beet (Comment 94) : oh riiiiight
@Letgo (Comment 91) :
Didn’t mean to sound like I am blaming him, just saying i think Lambie was the right guy.
@vanmartin (Comment 92) : Yip, although that was foolish.
@jonnow (Comment 96) : I don’t usually stand up for Steyn, but just in case you were blaming him I just thought to make it clear that, that would be unfair.
Good to know you weren’t. I’d love to see the next coach take Lambie all the way to RWC 2015.