The Lions held out in opposition to a late comeback to beat a younger Sharks XV aspect of their Currie Cup opener in Durban on Friday evening.
Second-half tries from unfastened ahead Jarod Cairns and alternative hooker Morne Brandon helped the Lions come from a half-time deficit to say a 26-25 win at Kings Park.
A scrappy first half noticed the Sharks go into the break 10-8 forward, due to unconverted tries from wing Jaco Williams and lock Le Roux Roets.
Nevertheless, the Lions got here again strongly within the second half and have been 26-20 up going into the ultimate 10 minutes. The Sharks piled the strain on and thought that they had scored the successful strive when captain Nick Hatton broke the Lions defence within the final minute, however veteran flyhalf Lionel Cronje missed his conversion.
Earlier within the day, 2022 champions the Pumas kickstarted the Currie Cup with an exhilarating 44-24 victory over Griquas in Kimberley.
The Airlink Pumas make a successful begin to the 2024 #CarlingCurrieCup✅🏉 pic.twitter.com/erznraH05h
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) July 5, 2024
Photograph: Steve Haag/Gallo Photos