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The Waratahs have put in a disjointed and error-ridden performance to go down comfortably to the Sharks in Durban, punished by ill-discipline and poor execution.
From the kick off, the Waratahs placed themselves under immediate pressure, failing to exit from their 22, Nick Phipps first box kick charged, and then failing to find touch, and after a few quick recycles, Sharks No.8 Lubabalo Mtembu strolled over in the corner to get the Sharks off to a flying start.
Discipline issues plagued the Waratahs from there, punctuated by a lazy clean out, lifting one leg and dumping a Shark player on his shoulder from Jack Dempsey, earning him 10 minutes on the sideline as the Sharks continued to tick the scoreboard over from the boot Curwin Bosch, who replaced Patrick Lambie early in the match through injury.
The Waratahs didn’t lack for endeavour, but they certainly lacked cohesion, loose passing allowing Bosch to intercept and race away to score the Sharks second try of the match, racing to an 18 to nil lead after just twenty minutes.
Israel Folau bought the Waratahs back into the match briefly, chasing and recovering a well-weighted chip ahead from Bryce Hegarty to score under the posts, but that would be all she wrote in the first half as the Sharks added a few more penalties.
Then after another error in midfield, Sharks winger Jacobus van Wyk swooped and ran away to give the Sharks a commanding lead at halftime of 31 points to 7.
The second half started promisingly, Sekope Kepu charging down an attempted box kick from Cobus Reinach, recovering and then with momentum, the Waratahs sent Folau over for his second but this would be the highlight of the second half.
Errors started to permeate through both sides and the game drifted to fulltime, the Sharks running out comfortable winners and bucking recent modern trends, preferring to kick their penalties rather than chase the bonus point.
The Waratahs will return to Sydney now with two comfortable losses on the trot, and now face a local derby at home against their local rivals, the Brumbies and I imagine they will be sweating on the fitness of injured first five Bernard Foley this week.
His experience and control would be a blessing for this Waratahs side as they look to get their season back on track.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.