It was predicted to be the match of the weekend and signs began proving it as early as on Monday evening when "sold out" signs were put up at Loftus Stadium ticket offices. The coaches in both camps showed the importance of this one when they named the best players in their staring line-ups. And then in an earlier match on Saturday GMT, the NSW Waratahs crushed the ACT Brumbies to put any doubts to rest as to what the stakes in the match were. Winner takes all and loser goes home.
When kick-off time arrived 49000 spectators were at the stadium waiting in expectation and were not disappointed as the titanic battle set off in an electric atmosphere. The Sharks showed their intentions by racing off to a 9-3 lead and forced the home side to play catch-up. The visitors extended the score line further when from a line out, Keegan Daniel passed to JP Pieterson who found a gap in the Bulls' defence, raced a good 50 metres down field and then made a pass to Stefan Terblanche who turned the run into a try with a defender bearing down on him.
With the Sharks showing hunger for points and the score 16-6 in their favour the Bulls needed a try to stay in the game, it came just before the hooter courtesy of winger Gerhard van de Heever. The home side scored first through Morne Steyn after the break to level the scores, but the Sharks, bent on staying in the lead, nudged ahead through the boot of Frenchman Frederic Michalak. There was a period of good rugby while the two sides were throwing everything at each other trying to pry each others' defenses open without success as neither was willing to give points away.
With less than 10 minutes to the end, Sharks' eighth man Ryan Kankowski, who's picked up a habit for the touchline lately and a knack for producing good plays when they're needed, in a move that was started by Patrick Lambie's line break in his own 22, Kankowski made another impressive run before making a pass to flyer Lwazi Mvovo who finished off the move and got the expected result of 5 points with the conversion to come. But the Bulls were not done yet; they pulled back a converted try through utility back Francois Hougaard and the reliable Morne Steyn to set up a nail biting finish to what will go down as the best local derby of this season. But as the spectators sat glued to their seats expecting a final volley from the home side, it was the referee who would have the final say when he penalized the Bulls for obstruction from a line out, and just then, the stadium's siren went.
It is almost unfair that in a game like this there could only be one winner, but in all fairness when the proverbial smoke clears, even the staunchest of Bulls' supporters may come to agree that the better team on the day won. The Sharks did not get many try scoring opportunities, the Bulls' cover defence was there to snuff out any ambitious hopes, but they made the few that they got count, while the Bulls squandered many through poor decisions and handling errors, and for that they will not be taking any further part in this year's Super Rugby competition.
