Stephen Donald kicked a penalty after the final siren Saturday to give Waikato Chiefs a 19-18 win over the Sharks in the Super 14.
The Sharks had led 18-16 only moments earlier when Rory Kockott landed a penalty at a rain-drenched Kings Park Stadium.
However, Sharks centre Andries Strauss was penalised for being offside right in front of his posts from the kickoff to give Donald his opportunity to win the match in the opening round of the competition.
Chiefs inside centre Jackson Willison scored the only try of the match in the 77th minute, a fair reward with the visitors playing the enterprising rugby in the sodden conditions by spreading the ball wide from the muddy contact points to stretch the defence.
Both teams were heavily penalised by New Zealand referee Keith Brown for slowing the ball down at the tackle, allowing Donald and Kockott to trade penalties throughout the first half for the score to be 6-6 at the break.
The Sharks broke the deadlock in the second half through Kockott’s boot for a 15-9 lead that looked enough to win the match.
But the Chiefs kept hammering away, exploiting the Sharks’ ill discipline with Springbok hooker Bismarck du Plessis in the sin bin from the 73rd minute for a cynical late shoulder charge on Hika Elliott. Willison’s try came from a surge downfield after that penalty.
Although Kockott regained the lead for the Sharks, Strauss’ indiscretion gave Donald his chance.
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