Rugby: Sharks end road trip on a high

PERTH - The Western Force's Super 14 finals hopes are in danger of imploding after a second-half capitulation handed the Sharks a 22-10 triumph at Subiaco Oval on Saturday night.

Scores were locked at 3-3 at the break but the Sharks broke the shackles early in the second half, with tries to JP Pietersen, Odwa Ndungane and Rory Kockott in an inspired 22-minute spell securing the Sharks' fifth win of the season.

Force winger Scott Staniforth notched a consolation try in the 73rd minute but it wasn't enough, with the Force's record at Subiaco Oval now a dismal eight wins from 22 appearances.

The result leaves the Force five points adrift of the top four, a gap that will increase next week with a bye.

The Sharks, meanwhile, are on track for a top-two finish after securing five wins from the first six rounds, with six of their final seven games of the season to be played at home.

The Force dominated the first half but were denied time and again by the Sharks' rock solid defence.

Force No 8 Tamaiti Horua and Sharks flanker Keegan Daniel were seeing stars in the second minute after a clash of heads but both recovered and Matt Giteau opened the scoring via a penalty in the ninth minute.

Fullback James O'Connor was influential early, defusing numerous high balls and long kicks from the Sharks.

But the Force's attacking raids failed to reap dividends, several botched passes letting the home side down when the try line beckoned.

Sharks first five-eighths Francois Steyn levelled at 3-3 with a drop goal in the 30th minute and the visitors held firm for the remainder of the half despite being reduced to 14 men in the 34th minute when prop Deon Carstens was handed a yellow card for a blatant offside offence.

The Force were made to pay dearly for their inability to strike, with Sharks captain John Smit setting up the first try of the match in the 43rd minute despite the visitors still being down a man.

Smit forced a spill from Force halfback Josh Valentine, with flanker Keegan Daniel scooping on the crumbs and firing a pass to winger JP Pietersen, who outran Drew Mitchell and O'Connor in his 60m sprint to the line.

Tries to Ndungane and Kockott extended the Sharks' lead to 22-3 in the 65th minute but the Force hit back seven minutes from time, with a neat inside pass from Giteau sending Staniforth over the line.

But it was too little, too late for the Force, who were far from pretty despite their pink attire.

"It was pretty brutal," Force coach John Mitchell told Fox Sports.

"We were a little bit unlucky for the amount of work that we put into the match, I feel for the boys."

"Everything came at us that we thought would come at us and we stood up and broke their line often, we just didn't get enough conversion out of the amount of possession we had and the amount of times we got in behind them."

Sharks coach John Plumtree said his team needed to put in a gutsy performance after last week's shock loss to the Reds.

"There was a lot of pressure after last week's performance," Plumtree told Fox Sports.

"We had to front up defensively a lot better.

"I'm just pleased we hung in there.

"The boys just wanted it more."

- AAP