Edwill van der Merwe scored on 77 minutes and the Sharks beat Leinster 26-20 at Hollywoodbets Kings Park, making it two wins from two in the 2026 Vodacom United Rugby Championship. The result also ends a five-match losing run against the defending champions.
Sharks vs Leinster in Round 2 was a game Leinster led twice, and the six-point margin handed them a losing bonus point, the single log point a side collects for losing by seven or fewer. The Sharks took five, the fourth try bringing the bonus that goes to any side reaching four.
Leinster drew first blood. Robbie Henshaw scored on 16 minutes and Caspar Gabriel converted for 0-7.
The Sharks answered through flank Manu Tshituka on 25 minutes, Vusi Moyo converting to level it at 7-7.
Thomas Clarkson was then shown yellow on 37 minutes, leaving Leinster a man down for the ten minutes a sin-bin runs. Wing Litelihle Bester crossed on 40 minutes while they were down to 14, and Moyo’s conversion, taken after the hooter, made it 14-7 at the break. Those 7 points were the only score while Clarkson was off the field.
The Two Second-Half Lead Changes In Sharks vs Leinster
The interval does not count against sin-bin time, so Clarkson served the balance of his ten minutes after the restart. He was back on the field in time to score himself on 48 minutes, and with the conversion missed the Sharks led 14-12.
Sam Prendergast, on for Gabriel from 50 minutes, landed a penalty on 65 minutes to put Leinster 15-14 in front.
Captain Andre Esterhuizen took it straight back on 68 minutes, Moyo converted, and the Sharks led 21-15.
Van der Merwe finished it nine minutes later, running in unconverted for 26-15.
“Edwill van der Merwe was the man of the match!” – 🎙️Jay
Andrew Osborne, off on 39 minutes and back on 46, scored on 80 minutes to close it to 26-20. Full-time: Sharks 26, Leinster 20.
What The Kickers Left On The Tee
The tee was not the story it was at Ellis Park earlier in the day. Moyo landed three from four for the Sharks, 2 points left out there. Leinster converted one of their three tries and added the Prendergast penalty, leaving 4.
Perfect kicking from both sides makes Sharks vs Leinster 28-24, still a Sharks win and still a one-score game.
The Sharks went to their bench just before the hour. Hanro Jacobs replaced Vincent Koch and Eben Etzebeth replaced Jason Jenkins on 53 minutes, and Ox Nche, Ethan Bester and Matt Romao came on for Thomas du Toit, Esethu Mnebelele and Nick Hatton on 54.
Ethan Hooker replaced Litelihle Bester on 61 minutes and Ivan van Zyl replaced Jaden Hendrikse on 69. Zekhethelo Siyaya was the one Sharks replacement who did not get on.
Leinster emptied theirs. Brian Deeny came on for Alan Spicer on 48 minutes and Prendergast for Gabriel on 50, Hugo McLaughlin replaced Todd Lawlor on 61, and on 69 Ciarán Mangan came on for Josh Ericson while Lawlor went back on for McLaughlin.
Clarkson was off himself on 73 minutes for Niall Smyth, with Gus McCarthy on for captain Rónan Kelleher at the same time. Oliver Coffey replaced Fintan Gunne on 75 minutes and Alex Usanov replaced Andrew Porter on 78.
Referee Craig Evans of the WRU had Hanru van Rooyen and Jonathan Lottering on the touchlines and Ben Breakspear on the TMO.
Sharks vs Leinster had gone Leinster’s way five times in succession before this, including 31-5 at the Aviva Stadium in October 2025 and 10-7 in Durban in March 2025.
The Sharks opened this season with a 41-24 bonus-point win over Ospreys in Durban and now sit on 10 log points from two rounds. Leinster, beaten 27-26 by the Lions at Ellis Park a week earlier, leave South Africa with two losing bonus points from their two-match tour.
Follow Just Plain Sport for the Round 3 team announcements and the reaction out of both camps as the United Rugby Championship rolls on.
Scorers
Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban, Saturday 3 October 2026.
Sharks 26 — Tries: Manu Tshituka (25), Litelihle Bester (40), Andre Esterhuizen (68), Edwill van der Merwe (77). Conversions: Vusi Moyo (26, 41, 69).
Leinster 20 — Tries: Robbie Henshaw (16), Thomas Clarkson (48), Andrew Osborne (80). Conversion: Caspar Gabriel (17). Penalty: Sam Prendergast (65).
Yellow card: Thomas Clarkson (Leinster, 37).
Teams
Sharks: Luan Giliomee, Edwill van der Merwe, Jurenzo Julius, Andre Esterhuizen (captain), Litelihle Bester, Vusi Moyo, Jaden Hendrikse, Thomas du Toit, Esethu Mnebelele, Vincent Koch, Jason Jenkins, Darrien Landsberg, Phepsi Buthelezi, Manu Tshituka, Nick Hatton. Replacements: Ethan Bester, Ox Nche, Hanro Jacobs, Eben Etzebeth, Matt Romao, Ivan van Zyl, Zekhethelo Siyaya, Ethan Hooker.
Leinster: Todd Lawlor, Tommy O’Brien, Hugh Cooney, Robbie Henshaw, Andrew Osborne, Caspar Gabriel, Fintan Gunne, Andrew Porter, Rónan Kelleher (captain), Thomas Clarkson, Conor O’Tighearnaigh, Alan Spicer, Ryan Baird, Josh van der Flier, Josh Ericson. Replacements: Gus McCarthy, Alex Usanov, Niall Smyth, Brian Deeny, Ciarán Mangan, Oliver Coffey, Sam Prendergast, Hugo McLaughlin.
