Hendrikse leads Sharks comeback

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Flyhalf Jordan Hendrikse kicked two conversions and a penalty as the Sharks rebounded from a 14-point half-time deficit to beat Ulster in Belfast on Saturday night.

The Sharks staged a dramatic comeback to beat Ulster 22-19 at Kingspan Stadium, overcoming the late withdrawal of captain Eben Etzebeth due to illness that may have contributed to a turgid start for the Durbanites. To mitigate the loss of the most capped Springbok, Siya Kolisi assumed the captaincy and Vincent Tshituka slotted in at lock.

Ulster surged into an early lead with tries from Jack Murphy and Jude Postlethwaite, exploiting lethargic Sharks defending, and Nathan Doak added another before half time.

A sinbin for Ulster’s Jacob Stockdale coincided with Makazole Mapimpi’s try following a strong run from lock Jason Jenkins, and the Bok finisher looked to have scored a second before it was scratched off due to a forward pass from Aphelele Fassi.

Trailing 19-5 at the break, the Sharks shuddered to life like they’d been roused from a coma, dominating the collisions and controlling the field in the second half. Manu Tshituku scored a try to narrow the gap before replacement centre Jurenzo Julius dotted down, Hendrikse adding the extras to level the scores at 19-19 before kicking the game-winning penalty with two minutes to go.

The South African teams will enjoy a bye this week as the European cup semi-finals play out, and the Sharks return to duty against Ospreys at Kings Park on 9 May.

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