Edwill van der Merwe of the Emirates Lions and Aphelele Fassi of the Cell C Sharks during the United Rugby Championship 2021/22 game between the Emirates Lions and the Sell C Sharks at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg on 22 January 2022
©Willem Loock/BackpagePix
Watch: The Sharks offload game is on fire at Ellis Park
Watch the Sharks score a remarkable try against the Lions at Ellis Park on their way to a 47-37 United Rugby Championship win.
Edwill van der Merwe of the Emirates Lions and Aphelele Fassi of the Cell C Sharks during the United Rugby Championship 2021/22 game between the Emirates Lions and the Sell C Sharks at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg on 22 January 2022
©Willem Loock/BackpagePix
Aphelele Fassi scored the Sharks first try on their way to a 47-37 victory over the Lions at Ellis Park, and it was a score worthy of being watched again.
Pouncing on a Lions mistake at the lineout, the Sharks picked holes in the Lions defence. What followed was an incredible string of offloads and passes.
Watch: Fassi scores the try of the URC
The Sharks had to come back from 12-3 down to win an entertaining contest.
It was a match that went to the wire, however, a late Sharks try denied the Lions a pair of bonus points.
The Lions played their part in putting on a great contest scoring five tries to earn at a single point though the result went against them.
Makazole Mapimpi scored a hat-trick though which proved the difference between the Sharks and the Lions.
Edwill van der Merwe was impressive in his first outing for the Lions, scoring a great try in the corner, when it seemed impossible for him to get the ball down. Van der Merwe also momentarily denied Mapimpi his hat-trick in a sharp piece of goal-line defence.
The Sharks move to the top of the South African Shield thanks to their five-point haul.
Some game-turning moments came late in the game with Mapimpi completing his hat-trick by gathering a hacked kick on the full and sprinting in for the score.
Mapimpi was named man of the match and was instrumental in the Sharks final score, which settled the match, with the familiar chip and chase and combination with Lukhanyo Am.
Scorers
Lions – Tries: Andre Warner, Wandisile Simelane, Ruben Schoeman, Edwill van der Merwe, Morne van den Berg. Conversions: Fred Zeilinga (2), Tiaan Swanepoel. Penalties: Zeilinga (2).
Sharks – Tries: Aphelele Fassi, Makazole Mapimpi (3). Kerron van Vuuren, Morne van den Berg. Penalties: Boeta Chamberain (3). Conversions: Chamberlain (3), Tito Bonilla.
