Rugby
Wins for Bulls and Sharks, loss for the Lions in final round of URC─── ILSE SMALBERGER 10:11 Sun, 17 May 2026
Three South African teams will take part in the quarterfinal of the United Rugby Championship with two teams hosting.
The Stormers host Cardiff and the Bulls welcome Munster to Loftus in a double-header Saturday afternoon in South Africa, while the Lions will have to travel to play Leinster in the last game.
In Saturday’s URC matches, the Bulls and Sharks were both victorious over Benetton and Zebre, respectively.
At Loftus Versfeld, the Bulls booked their place in the top four with a 45-19 win over Benetton, leading by 26-12 at half-time. Sergeal Petersen scored a brace of tries in the match, while Louis Lynagh scored twice for Benetton.
Scorers
Bulls: Tries - Sergeal Petersen 2, Willie le Roux, Johan Grobbelaar, Cobus Wiese, Mpilo Gumede, Ruan Nortjé
Conv. - Handré Pollard 5
Benetton: Tries - Louis Lynagh 2, Rhyno Smith Conv. - Smith 2
The Bulls flyhalf Handre Pollard. Photo: Bulls
In Durban, the Sharks had no problem defeating the other Italian side, Zebre, by 54-19 in their last match of the competition. A youthful Sharks side ran rampant in the Sharks Tank, but it was old-time Siya Kolisi, who scored twice for the hosts in his last match for the club, who stole the show.
Scorers
Sharks: Tries - Jaco Williams, Siya Kolisi 2, Zekhethelo Siyaya, Vusi Moyo, Emmanuel Tshituka, Le Roux Malan, Ross Braude Conv. - Vusi Moyo 2, Jean Smith (2)
Zebre: Tries - Malik Faissal, Simone Gesi, Giovanni Quattrini Conv. - Giovanni Montemauri 2
And in Limerick, the Lions went down 24-17 to Munster in their final URC game. But it was all bad news. The Lions were already assured of playoff qualification before their game against Munster. And thanks to a bonus point for losing by seven points, they also have a guaranteed spot in next season’s Investec Champions Cup.
Scorers
Munster: Tries: Evan O’Connell, Craig Casey, Tom Ahern Conv. - JJ Hanrahan3 Pen. - Hanrahan.
Lions: Tries - Quan Horn, Kelly Mpeku Conv. - Chris Smith 2
The quarter-finals are scheduled as follows:
Friday, 29 May:
19:45 – Glasgow Warriors vs Connacht (Scotstoun Stadium)
Saturday, 30 May:
12:00 – Bulls vs Munster (Loftus Versfeld)
14:30 – Stormers vs Cardiff ( Cape Town Stadium)
20:00 – Leinster vs Lions (Aviva Stadium)
