Sharks close on play-off spot
The Sharks scored two second-half tries and finished with 13 men on the way to beating the Cheetahs 23-18 in Bloemfontein.
Last Updated: 04/06/11 7:16pm
The Sharks scored two second-half tries and finished with 13 men on the way to beating the Cheetahs 23-18 in Bloemfontein.
The win puts the Durban-based side on course for the play-offs with two rounds left as the Sharks overturned an 11-6 half-time deficit.
Patrick Lambie had kicked them into a 12th-minute lead only for Cheetahs to cross through Sarel Pretorius moments later.
Sias Ebersohn kicked them further ahead with penalties in the 18th and 30th minute and with the Sharks starved of possession they only had a second Lambie goal to show for their efforts.
But he made it a hat-trick just four minutes into the second-half to narrow the deficit to three and five minutes later Sharks were ahead, wing Lawzi Mvovo outpacing the Cheetahs' defence before bulldozing past Pretorius and full-back Hennie Daniller.
Lambie converted and although Cheetahs were driven forward with the inspirational Pretorius at their heart, Sharks found space to counter 12 minutes from time with JP Pietersen finishing off a move involving replacement Adi Jacobs and Meyer Bosman.
Sharks had both scrum-half Charl McLeod and number eight Keegan Daniel yellow-carded inside the last 10 minutes, with the Cheetahs capitalising through Riaan Viljoen late on, but time had run out on them.
