Sharks changeroom 'dead quiet' after Toulouse defeat: 'For most of the game we were really in it'

Sharks director of rugby Neil Powell gave a sombre analysis after his side's heavy defeat to Toulouse in the Champions Cup quarter-finals on Saturday.

Despite a promising start, the Sharks capitulated late on to lose 54-20.

MATCH REPORT | Sharks' Champions Cup hopes dashed after late capitulation in Toulouse

The scoreline though flatters the hosts somewhat as the Sharks were in this contest for large parts. The Durbanites had led for most of the first half but lost their grip on the game late in the opening stanza.

The Sharks were still in the contest when they trailed by only 26-20 after 67 minutes. However, four late tries by Toulouse saw them rack up a big victory and leave Siya Kolisi's charges shell-shocked at the final whistle.

"A big disappointment... walking into the changeroom after the game, it was dead quiet. You could see the disappointment on the guys' faces and in the environment in the changeroom," Powell said after the game.

(•_•) ( •_•)>¬¦-¦(¬¦_¦) @RomainNtamack is just too cool ??A double dummy and he crosses over for @StadeToulousain's 7??th try of the game ??#HeinekenChampionsCup pic.twitter.com/WNeAOBm01u

Powell highlighted an incident midway through the second half as the turning point.

The Sharks, trailing 26-17 at that stage, thought they were back in it when scrumhalf Grant Williams dotted down under the posts after collecting a pass from the dangerous Makazole Mapimpi. However, the try was cancelled after replays on the big screen showed a forward pass from Williams in the build-up.

"For most of the game we were really in it. The turning point was that try that was disallowed because of a forward pass. I think if we scored that we probably could have gotten a bit of momentum and tried to stay on top of