Connacht 36

Sharks 30

By JOHN FALLON at Dexcom Stadium

CONNACHT have certainly been the ‘great entertainers’ of the opening two rounds of the URC. Seven points have been gleaned out of a possible ten. Ten tries have been scored and the lead has changed hands ten times in those opening games away to Munster and at Dexcom Stadium on Saturday night.

But it hasn’t been all plain sailing. Eight tries have been conceded and what are the chances of Connacht coming back for victory again if they fall 20 points adfrift by the interval?

The weather, for once, played no part in the big swing in fortunes at the College Road venue. Indeed, a benign evening lent itself to a roller-coaster encounter on a night when Roscommon native Denis Buckley made his 250th appearance for the province.

He lined out in the most experienced front row Connacht have ever fielded with tighthead Finlay Bealham making his 205th appearance and hooker Dave Heffernan playing his 202nd for his native province.

Heffernan said Connacht’s experience stood to them and they refused to panic when they found themselves 20 points adrift at the interval in a remarkble game.

They looked set for a drubbing when they trailed 27-7 at the break but then dominated the second-half and secured their first URC win of the season with a five try haul.

“We just needed to get back control of the game,” said Heffernan. “We compounded errors in that second 20-minutes of the first-half and let them back in. They were very clinical and every mistake we made they punished us. We regrouped at half-time and came out firing and got control back of the game,” added the Ballina man.

Connacht could not have envisaged a better start as they penned the South Africans inside their own 22 for over three minutes at the outset of the game before a penalty to the left corner ended with hooker Heffernan scoring after the initial surge was contained by the Sharks.

Pictured: Connacht’s Cathal Forde is tackled by Bradley Davids and Andre Esterhuizen of the Sharks during Saturday’s URC tie at Dexcom Stadium. Photo: Joe O’Shaughnessy.