Powell admits to Sharks' ill-discipline after Stormers loss: 'We were in the game'

Sharks coach Neil Powell says that inaccuracies caused his side to fall short following their loss to the Stormers in their United Rugby Championship (URC) encounter on Saturday. 

Despite a second-half fight back, the Sharks were held by the hosts and lost 29-23 at Cape Town Stadium.

READ | Sport trumps politics: Stormers fans vote with their feet, shun 'protest' for superb turnout

Trailing 26-6 at half-time, the Sharks bounced back with two tries from wing Yaw Penxe and centre Rohan Janse van Rensburg to make it 26-18 heading into the last 15 minutes. 

However, a 13-man Stormers outfit held on and Powell's side fell four points short of a famous win.

"The guys showed a lot of confidence out there. It was more individual inaccuracies. There was a lot of ill-discipline in the first half that put us on the back foot," Powell told reporters on Saturday.

"We know the Stormers feed off your mistakes, that's how they scored their first three tries. It is difficult to play catch up against them."

Powell admits that the Sharks were undone by a better outfit as the Stormers extended their spot at the top, capturing five log points.

"Of course, it was an opportunity. We were in the game in the last eight minutes. One or two mistakes from individuals prevented us from getting on top of them," said Powell.

"You could see the efforts from the guys. I wish they could have got a better result, I think they deserved a better result. One or two mistakes prevented us from scoring that final blow."

The Sharks' next URC encounter is on Saturday, 25 March against the Scarlets (19:00 SA time).