Sharks 12-13 Connacht: Connacht continue fine URC start by beating struggling Sharks

JJ Hanrahan's eight points helped Connacht beat the Sharks in Durban

Connacht continued their superb start to the United Rugby Championship and piled further misery on struggling Sharks by edging a 13-12 win in Durban.

Sean O'Brien's early try and eight JJ Hanrahan points earned Connacht's fourth win in five games as the Sharks suffered a fifth straight defeat.

Sikhumbuzo Notshe and Werner Kok scored Sharks tries but the home side were punished for missing two simple kicks.

Curwin Bosch misjudged the shot clock as his hurried conversion went wide.

That was following Notshe's 30th-minute try and replacement Boeta Chamberlain fired wide from a central position on the edge of Connacht's 22 seven minutes from time as Pete Wilkins' side held on after a dogged defensive effort.

Handling and lineout woes hinder Sharks

After opening away defeats by Leinster, Munster, Ospreys and Zebre, the Sharks were hoping to get back to winning ways on home soil as they were able to call upon Springboks World Cup squad centre Lukhanyo Am.

In the event, they had more than enough chances to win the contest but handling errors and lineout struggles hindered their performance, in addition to the vital missed kicks.

Impressive wing Byron Ralston's 50-22 helped set up O'Brien's early Connacht try, although there did appear the suspicion of a double movement as the number eight made the grounding.

After Hanrahan added the extras, the Sharks looked set to reply almost immediately after Phepsi Buthelezi's turnover but his fellow back row James Venter knocked on with the line gaping.

Brilliant last-ditch tacking by Denis Buckley and Cian Prendergast then prevented Aphiwe Dyantyi from touching down before the Sharks pressure finally yielded Notshe's try, only for Bosch to miss the conversion from in front of the post amid his shot clock woes.

Connacht led 10-5 at half-time in Durban

Tadhg McElroy's turnover, which yielded Hanrahan's first successful penalty before the break, summed up the hooker's superb work in the loose as the visitors led 10-5 at the interval.

The Sharks looked to be taking control after the break as incessant pressure resulted in the 48th-minute yellow carding of Connacht lock Oisin Dowling.

Werner Kok's Sharks try immediately followed as he benefited from a lucky bounce to run in under the posts, with Bosch adding the extras to put the Sharks ahead for the first time.

However, Connacht didn't concede any more points when they were down to 14 men and they were back in front by the 68th minute as Bosch was turned over just inside his own 10-metre line, with Hanrahan again slotting the penalty.

The Sharks looked certain to regain the lead on 73 minutes as Connacht's replacement scrum-half Caolin Blade was penalised for preventing the home side from taking a quick lineout inside the visitors' 22.

However to gasps from the home crowd, Chamberlain missed the kick, which again was from a reasonably central position on the edge of the 22.

Young scrum-half Colm Reilly's kicking game had been exemplary for Connacht and Blade managed the contest equally well in the closing stages as the Sharks were kept in their own half.

Sharks: Fassi; Kok, Am, F Venter (capt), Dyantyi; Bosch, Wright; Mchunu, Richardson, Oosthuizen; Rahl, Van Heerden; J Venter, Buthelezi, Notshe.

Replacements: Jooste, Bleuler, Jacobs, Labuschagne, Mavesere, Mkhabela, Chamberlain, Van Rensburg

Connacht: O'Halloran; Ralston, Farrell, Forde, Smith; Hanrahan, Reilly; Buckley, McElroy, Bealham; Dowling, Joyce; Prendergast, Oliver (capt), O'Brien.

Replacements: Heffernan, Dooley, Robertson-McCoy, Murray, Hurley-Langton, Blade, Hawkshaw, John Porch.

Referee: Craig Evans (WRU)