Werner Kok celebrated his 50th appearance for the Sharks with a hat-trick that helped clinch a tour win against Scarlets in Llanelli on Friday night. The shaggy-haired winger dotted down once in the first half and twice in the second, both from pinpoint crosskicks courtesy of flyhalf Siya Masuku who also contributed 12 points with the boot. The Sharks bounced back from last week’s defeat in Glasgow to beat Scarlets 32-27 and bank the fourth victory of their 2023-24 campaign. The lead changed hands three times in a first half that ended with the tourists up 17-13 – Kok and tighthead prop Vincen ..read more

Follow the live action as the Scarlets host the Sharks in a Vodacom United Rugby Championship clash in Llanelli. Tweets by SharksRugby Tweets by scarlets_rugby Tweets by VodacomRugga  The post LIVE: Scarlets vs Sharks appeared first on SA Rugby magazine ..read more

Jake White is eager to unleash Jannes Kirsten against Ospreys, with the experienced utility forward set to make his Vodacom URC debut for the Vodacom Bulls on Saturday. Kirsten, who has been sidelined by injury since signing from the Exeter Chiefs this season, will form part of a five-three split on the bench for the Pretoria clash this week. Skipper Elrigh Louw will earn his 50th cap in the competition, shifting to blindside flanker in a powerful loose trio with No 8 Cameron Hanekom and veteran campaigner Nizaam Carr. On Kirsten’s long-awaited debut, White remarked, “He is one of those guys w ..read more

Wales’ World Cup captain Dewi Lake is among the internationals returning for Ospreys for the Vodacom URC match against the Bulls in Pretoria on Saturday. Lake has not played since rupturing his hamstring in January, a week before the Six Nations got underway. The 13-Test hooker, who captained Wales at the 2023 World Cup in France, has been named on Ospreys’ bench as Toby Booth’s side strengthened their pack for the duel at Loftus Versfeld, after beating the DHL Stormers in Cape Town. Wales loose forward Justin Tipuric is back to captain Ospreys, who have recalled lock Adam Beard and loosehead ..read more

Jason Jenkins starts at No 5 as head coach Leo Cullen tweaks the Leinster lineup to face the DHL Stormers in Cape Town on Saturday. The Sharks-bound Springbok will pack down in the second row with Brian Deeny in a starting XV that includes several changes from the team that lost to the Lions at Ellis Park last week. Henry McErlean, Liam Turner and Rob Russell comprise the back three, while Charlie Ngatai and Ben Brownlee are partnered in midfield. Cormac Foley and Sam Prendergast will run out at scrumhalf and flyhalf, respectively. TEAM: Harris hits Stormers 150 Michael Milne, John McKee and M ..read more

John Dobson hailed Brok Harris as “one of the greatest DHL Stormers of all time” as the veteran prop makes his 150th appearance in Cape Town on Saturday. Harris will make his 150th appearance for the DHL Stormers in the crunch Vodacom URC clash against Leinster on Saturday night. It will be the 39-year-old’s fifth straight start, a run which includes the Champions Cup playoff against La Rochelle, as the Stormers have experienced an injury crisis at loosehead prop. “Brok, to my mind, is going to go down as one of the greatest Stormers of all time,” Dobson said, during a press conference on Frid ..read more

Brok Harris will become the first player to reach 150 appearances for the DHL Stormers in the Vodacom URC encounter with Leinster in Cape Town on Saturday. Loose forwards Evan Roos and Marcel Theunissen will both bring up the milestone of 50 matches for the DHL Stormers in the clash with the log-leaders, which kicks off at 7.05pm on Saturday. Harris is joined in the front row by Neethling Fouche and Joseph Dweba, while captain Salmaan Moerat will partner Ruben van Heerden in the second row. Roos and Theunissen will link up with Ben-Jason Dixon in the loose trio, with hooker Andre-Hugo Venter a ..read more

Chris Smith starts at flyhalf as Jannes Kirsten makes a long-awaited return in a rejigged Vodacom Bulls lineup to face Ospreys in Pretoria on Saturday. Smith replaces the suspended Johan Goosen and links up with scrumhalf Embrose Papier in the starting XV as one of eight changes to the run-on team that lost to defending champions Munster at Loftus Versfeld in the Vodacom URC last week. Canan Moodie shifts from outside centre to right winger, with Sebastian de Klerk dropped altogether. David Kriel and Harold Vorster will form a new midfield pairing. ALSO: Bulls playmaker cops ban In the pack, C ..read more

Former Springbok skipper Corne Krige has been giving his thoughts on the upcoming Vodacom URC battle between two wounded beasts as the DHL Stormers prepare to host Leinster. The Stormers – Krige’s former team – went down to a surprise 27-21 home defeat to the Ospreys last weekend, while league leaders Leinster were thumped 44-12 by the Lions. Now the two beaten big guns will lock horns in Cape Town on Saturday evening, Speaking on a URC round table, Krige revealed the reaction to the Stormers’ loss at the hands of the Ospreys. “There was quite a bit of a backlash on that,” the former loose for ..read more

The DHL Stormers and Vodacom Bulls bounce back while the Lions spoil Munster’s quest for the Highveld double, according to the SARugbymag.co.za team. Scarlets vs Sharks (Friday, Llanelli, 8:35pm) Devin Hermanus: Scarlets by 10 Rienk de Beer: Sharks by 8 Zelím Nel: Sharks by 7 Juandre Joubert: Scarlets by 3 Simon Borchardt: Sharks by 12 Dylan Jack: Sharks by 9 Grant Craze: Sharks by 10 TEAM: Big guns back for Sharks Ulster vs Benetton (Friday, Belfast, 8:35pm) Devin Hermanus: Ulster by 2 Rienk de Beer: Ulster by 4 Zelím Nel: Ulster by 10 Juandre Joubert: Ulster by 8 Simon Borchardt: Benetton by ..read more