the sharks last won the currie cup in 2013.
when last did the sharks win the currie cup?
2013
many of the above-mentioned players, along with some of the stalwarts like john smit, stefan terblanche and jacques botes, together with a few new recruits like willem alberts and louis ludik, and new talent coming through the sharks academy made good in 2010 as the team regained the absa currie cup trophy after another successful domestic season. having finished the pool stages of the tournament at the top of the log, they dispatched of the blue bulls in the semi-final and then comprehensively beat western province 30-10 in the final - both matches taking place in front of home crowds at the shark tank. young patrick lambie was the star of the show, earning the coveted man of the match award with his 25 individual points' haul and he, along with keegan daniel, lwazi mvovo, willem alberts and charl mcleod all went on to gain springbok honours at the end of the year. the sharks reached their third final in four years when they finished second on the log in 2011, with the lions finishing top. the lions had not won a trophy since beating the sharks in the 1999 currie cup final. despite the odds, a fired-up lions side emulated the feat of their predecessors of 12 years previously (the sharks had also suffered a 12-year drought, winning in 1996 and then again in 2008) and ran out winners at a packed ellis park in johannesburg, defeating the sharks and emerge 2011 currie cup champions. it was a similar scenario in 2012 when the sharks managed, again, to reach the currie cup final, hosting it again as they had successfully in 2008 and 2010. all the signs suggested that they would emulate those feats, but sadly it was western province who broke their own 11 year trophy drought in a tight final at kings park, with juan de jongh dancing through the sharks defence in the 36th minute to score what would become the match-winning try. the final score was 25-18 in favour of western province.however, the sharks were not to be denied in 2013 when matters were reversed. the final pool match pitted the sharks and western province against one another at kings park, the teams one and two on the log. the winner of that match would finish top and thus earn the right to host the final, should they get through. western province won 17-13 and finished top of the currie cup log, with the sharks in second position.
sharks (currie cup)
that 1990 victory was the catalyst for further currie cup success, as mcintosh set about ensuring continuity that culminated in natal being labelled the "team of the ‘90s" a decade later. during this time, the province also recruited wisely, with the likes of du preez, fullback andre joubert, flyhalf henry honiball, centre pieter muller and prop ollie le roux all making the trip to durban to seek greater fortune. another shrewd acquisition was tireless flanker bartmann from transvaal, and 1992 saw him lead natal to a second currie cup triumph – this time away from home. francois pienaar’s powerful transvaal unit were defeated 14-13 in the final at ellis park. a 21-15 currie cup final defeat to the same opponents followed in 1993 – a loss that was made all the more difficult because it took place in front of an expectant home crowd at kings park. but the newly branded sharks were back in the winner's circle just two years later. by now, players such as locks mark andrews and atherton, hooker john allan, eighth man gary teichmann, prop adrian garvey, wing cabous van der westhuizen and scrumhalf kevin putt were all household names and either current or future springbok stars. making the most of a memorable world cup year which saw the springboks claim an historic first world title, mcintosh also recruited frenchmen olivier roumat and thierry lacroix to bolster what was already a highly talented squad. it proved a masterstroke, with the big lock and flyhalf playing important roles in the 1995 final victory over western province in durban. the final score was 25-17, with the sharks able to celebrate a third currie cup success in six years. with the likes of legendary fullback joubert now entering their prime, along with a new crop of sharks heroes in the form of flank wayne fyvie and prop robbi kempson, further success followed in 1996 with the natal securing their first back-to-back currie cup titles. such was their dominance in that year that mcintosh's side were able to travel away to ellis park and convincingly beat transvaal 33-15, with joubert grabbing the man-of-the-match award with a stunning two-try performance. it was surprising, then, that the team from durban had to wait until 1999 to contest another final, with the likes of western province, free state cheetahs and the northern transvaal once again coming into their own towards the end of the 1990s. but it was transvaal, now renamed the golden lions, that would cause natal currie cup heartache, as they pitched up in durban and handed the four-time champions a 32-9 hiding in the 1999 final, with lions fullback thinus delport scoring twice in a match-winning performance. despite the best efforts of their rising star, under-21 flyhallf cobus gomes who kicked 3 penalties and scored what was arguably the try of the season only to have it reversed due to ill discipline in the scrum prior to the line break. that signaled the end of an era, with mcintosh, inspirational captain teichmann, honiball and joubert all announcing their retirements.
sharks (currie cup)