Watch SA Rainbow Cup Match highlights: Sharks vs. Lions & Bulls vs. Stormers.

Staff Reporter.

The Cell C Sharks ensured they will be alone at the top of the Rainbow Cup SA log at the end of round two as they scored a deserved 34-26 win over the Emirates Lions at Jonsson King’s Park in Durban on Saturday evening.

The Sharks scored their fourth try 17 minutes into the second half to clinch the try scoring bonus point that was going to be enough to keep them in pole position on the log.

The hosts survived some dicey moments in the middle stages of the match as the Lions came back at them but the Johannesburg team could not take full advantage of an eight minute period near the start of the second half where it was 15 against 13 following the yellow carding of Sharks players Thomas du Toit and Fez Mbatha in the 44th and 46th minutes respectively.

Whereas the previous week the boot was on the other foot when it came to cards in their match against the Stormers in Cape Town and the Sharks were considered fortunate to win, this time apart from the aforementioned lapse in the middle stages of the game the Sharks were full value for their win and never looked likely to lose.

Meanwhile a 14-man Vodacom Bulls side showed grit and determination to beat the DHL Stormers 20-16 in their Rainbow Cup game at Cape Town Stadium in a game that delivered more talking points about the experimental laws than the game itself.

While the Bulls ultimately held out and showed immense grit on defence, it was the captain’s challenge that will be talked about as an experimental law for the coming days.

It shouldn’t be surprising to see that teams have worked out that the challenge can be used as a weapon against opposition and both sides milked a yellow card with their challenges as they took away from the spectacle of the game.

The Bulls defence was superb on the night, and they shaded the big moments when it mattered.

And when it came down to it, challenges aside, the Bulls were more composed in the moments that mattered, and that won them the game.

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