Following a 29-19 victory for the Sharks over the Scarlets, here are our five takeaways from the United Rugby Championship clash at Kings Park Stadium on Saturday.<\/b><\/p>\n
The top line<\/p>\n
John Plumtree\u2019s Sharks ended their barren URC streak at the start of the 2025\/26 but again it was not entirely convincing, despite sealing a bonus-point victory over a resilient Scarlets outfit.<\/p>\n
It was a battle between two winless sides, but the hosts, as should be expected, had enough quality to overcome the Welsh region and kick-start their campaign.<\/p>\n
They looked in for another difficult afternoon when Tom Rogers went over \u2013 adding to earlier tries from Blair Murray and Marnus van der Merwe \u2013 to level the scores at 19-19, the Springboks\u2019<\/a> power took over after that.<\/p>\n The Tshituka brothers, Emmanuel and Vincent, both touched down for the Sharks<\/a> before Lee-Marvin Mazibuko \u2013 a late replacement for Vincent Koch \u2013 crossed the whitewash, but they had to rely on their scrum \u2013 with Ox Nche to the fore \u2013 to wrestle control of the encounter.<\/p>\n Once again, they held off the Scarlets<\/a> with a bit more comfort as a Siya Kolisi try and Jean Smith penalty sealed the win.<\/p>\n Sharks underwhelm again<\/p>\n It feels as though it is said every week, but it is staggering that a team which contains so many Springbok stars continually flatters to deceive. There were moments of individual brilliance that showed their class, but as a unit, they were sadly lacking.<\/p>\n There were some barnstorming Siya Kolisi surges, a couple of exceptional moments from Ethan Hooker in the air thanks to Grant Williams\u2019 excellent box-kicking, but they made so many errors that it hampers any sort of cohesiveness.<\/p>\n On both sides of the ball, there were mistakes which make you question whether some of these players have ever played Test rugby, let alone be some of the game\u2019s modern-day greats. It must be remembered that this Scarlets outfit have been shambolically bad so far this season and were humbled by the Stormers at home two weeks ago, but they did cause the Sharks plenty of problems.<\/p>\n Too late to save John Plumtree?<\/p>\n There have been murmurings for a while, with fans unhappy with the Sharks\u2019 displays under the former All Blacks coach, but you just wonder if the hierarchy will pull the trigger during the international break. He will certainly remain under pressure at the very least.<\/p>\n After this game, they have over a month until their next game, which would feasibly give them time to get a new person in. Plumtree\u2019s men went into this encounter without a win following three defeats in four \u2013 A dreadful draw to the Dragons, their only \u2018positive\u2019 result \u2013 and although they ended that drought, it was hardly convincing.<\/p>\n There was no discernible improvement against the Scarlets, which has been symptomatic of the Sharks during Plumtree\u2019s reign. In fairness, he had a big rebuilding job when he arrived in 2023 and going from 14th, with four wins, to third and a semi-final a season later does suggest excellent progress, but in truth, the performances were not convincing, and they did not look like title challengers in 2024\/25.<\/p>\n With their resources, the Sharks should be doing far better than they are, but the development has not really been forthcoming.<\/p>\n