Hollywoodbets Sharks coach JP Pietersen says his team showed immense courage to fight back late on and secure a 21-12 victory over the Bulls at Hollywoodbets Kings Park in the seventh round of the URC on Saturday.
The win, just the hosts’ second in the competition so far this season, now sees them occupy 12th as they continue their comeback after their slow start in 2025/26.
“We asked the group, we had a chat, and we wanted to make the badge proud, we want to make the community proud, we want to make Sharks fans proud,” noted a content Pietersen post-match.
“I think with a performance like that today, it showed that we care. We care, we play until the end and we find a way in the last 15-20 minutes.”
Despite trailing 7-12 heading as late as the 70th-minute, the home side managed to rest back control and dramatically score two late tries to ultimately condemn the Pretoria outfit to a fifth straight loss in all competitions.
Said Pietersen: “I think it’s part of the Sharks Fest, you’ve got to leave it to the last 10-minutes for us to win the game for entertainment!
“But I think the bench made an impact when they went on. You could see the energy and impact they made. I must give a massive shout-out to Jaden [Hendrikse], I think it was four or five big moments he made in the game which changed the game for us.”
The atmosphere at the ground was electric, with a near full-capacity crowd giving the team an added boost and something to think about going forward, according to the new Sharks boss.
“I think it means a lot to the guys, the home grown okes that have been here for a long time. And the guys that are new here, to feel and experience this, it will sit in their heart and they will realise that Durban is a special place and we can just build on that.”
Thanks largely to their all-star front row of Gerhard Steenekamp, Johan Grobbelaar and Wilco Louw, the Bulls were pounding the hosts at scrum time but Pietersen was proud of the way his charges responded.
“You can look at the Bulls’ front row, they’re all Springboks, experienced. I think Phatu [Ganyane] massively we must give credit to him, he played until 70-minutes. Obviously he gave penalties away, but he learned and he showed that he can compete at this level.
“They put us under pressure in this part of the game, we could have done better, maybe won the ball more in the air.
“It’s something to work on, but we knew this is what the Bulls would bring. They’re a good team with the set piece.”
Considering how freely the Bulls have been scoring this season, the fact that they were totally restricted at the Shark Tank was another huge boon for the side.
“We must give massive credit to [defence coach] Joey [Mongalo]. They didn’t score one try, which shows that defensively we were good, even though we were under pressure in the scrums.”
Following that difficult opening 40-minutes, Pietersen said his charges regrouped well in the changerooms at halftime.
“The chat was, if you look at the stats, territory and possession, the Bulls dominated the first-half. Handre [Pollard] was going forward. That was the chat, can we kick in behind them, make them exit from behind.
“That was the plan and we got good reward, Grant [Williams] kicked well, Edwill van der Merwe contested well, gave us scrums inside their 22m, that’s how we won territory. Then we put their skillset under pressure.”
The Hollywoodbets Sharks are next in action against the Lions in Johannesburg next week.
