‘Pretty gutted’ Mziwakhe Nkosi bemoans Lions’ Currie Cup final heartbreak

They were Currie Cup champions-in-waiting for 10 seconds in front of their home fans at Ellis Park, and should’ve kicked the ball out after winning the line-out.

But a stumped Mziwakhe Nkosi, the Lions head coach, can’t explain the reasoning behind his troops launching that fateful rolling maul in the dying seconds of the final against the Sharks on Saturday.

Somehow, the Durbanites turned over possession and launched an attack from in their 22m area, eventually winning a penalty for fullback Jordan Hendrikse, a former Lions player, to break the hearts of his ex-teammates and coaches, slotting a 59m monster penalty for a 16-14 Sharks win.

𝐀 𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐊𝐈𝐂𝐊 😲

Jordan Hendrikse's 59m kick won it for the Hollywoodbets Sharks XV 😤🔥 #CarlingCurrieCup pic.twitter.com/wV7GC6pk80

— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) September 21, 2024

“Just in the moment, that leadership lacked. I can’t explain it,” Nkosi said after the loss.

“All we had to do was call a line-out where the scrumhalf is in front, and he gets the ball and kicks it out.

“We proceeded to maul it, and they turned it over. The call then was a bit harsh, because I thought we had all rights to the ball – but either way, we should have kicked the ball out and become Currie Cup champions instead.”

After dominating the domestic tournament for most of the season, the Lions will feel they’ve let a great chance slip through their fingers to start the United Rugby Championship season on a winning note with the golden domestic trophy.

Scrumhalf Nico Steyn and loose forward Siba Qoma scored second-half tries, while flyhalf Sanele Nohamba slotted the conversions to put the Lions 14-13 up after 75 minutes, before Hendrikse’s dramatic late kick.

While Nkosi said that they’ve achieved some goals from a franchise perspective, it stings losing the final like that with youngsters against a team whose value is probably that of Ellis Park.

“To score a try with a man down and try and close it off ... If you look at their roster, it’s incredible. I don’t think people knew who Renzo du Plessis (Lions loose forward) was before this season. But maybe that is why their roster is like that.

“It is heartbreaking to see Jordan kick the winning kick when I recruited him from the Maties B-field.”

“That is the game of rugby ... there is little we can do. Personally, it’s a big loss. You don’t get too many opportunities to get into finals and to win it. I think we put ourselves in a good position to win the final, so I am pretty gutted.

“It is heartbreaking to see Jordan kick the winning kick when I recruited him from the Maties B-field. But I guess that is rugby, hey.”