The Sharks recorded their first win of the season with a deserved 30-16 victory over the Highlanders in Dunedin on Saturday.

While it has been a long time coming, the win proved what the Sharks had been telling us all year - they are still a quality side.

The three-tries-to-one win is probably more convincing than the scoreline suggest.

Sharks captain John Smit summed it up best when he said: "My boys needed this."

He also spoke of the Highlanders' long trip back from South Africa and how that allowed his team to capitalise on it in the second half.

The Highlanders dominated territory and possession in the first half, but still trailed 6-10 at the break.

The Sharks saw more of the ball after the break and turned up the heat. They played with more verve and fire, their confidence levels raised and they managed to camp inside the Highlanders half for long periods.

Even more important, the Sharks took the points when the opportunities presented themselves and once they had a decent lead on the scoreboard, they started to play a more enterprising brand of rugby.

The Highlanders, as was to be expected, came back strongly in the final quarter and a try by wing Ben Smith with just over 10 minutes remaining ensured there would be a grand stand finish.

With less than five minutes on the clock Fetu'u Vainikolo was in and over in the corner, but the call went to the TMO - who ruled than Ryan Kankowski had tackled him into touch in-goal.

And as the Highlanders chased the game, hoping to get that vital try, Adi Jacobs intercepted a stray pass to score the try that sealed the Sharks' first win.

The scorers:

For the Highlanders:
Try: Smith
Con: Dagg
Pens: Dagg 3

For the Sharks:
Tries: B du Plessis, Terblanche, Jacobs
Cons: Pienaar 3
Pens: Pienaar 3

Teams:

Highlanders: 15 Israel Dagg, 14 Ben Smith, 13 Kenny Lynn, 12 Michael Hobbs, 11 James Paterson, 10 Robbie Robinson, 9 Jimmy Cowan (captain), 8 Adam Thomson, 7 Alando Soakai, 6 John Hardie, 5 Hayden Triggs, 4 Josh Bekhuis, 3 Clint Newland, 2 Jason Rutledge, 1 Jamie Mackintosh.
Replacements: 16. Jason Macdonald, 17 Chris King, 18 Joe Tuineau, 19 Tim Boys, 20 Sean Romans, 21 Jayden Hayward, 22 Fetu'u Vainikolo.

The Sharks: 15 Patrick Lambie, 14 Stefan Terblanche, 13 Adrian Jacobs, 12 Riaan Swanepoel, 11 JP Pietersen, 10 Andy Goode, 9 Ruan Pienaar, 8 Ryan Kankowski, 7 Jean Deysel, 6 Keegan Daniel, 5 Johann Muller (captain), 4 Steven Sykes, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 John Smit.
Replacements: 16 Craig Burden, 17 Wiehan Herbst, 18 Alistair Hargreaves, 19 Willem Alberts, 20 Jacques Botes, 21 Rory Kockott, 22 Waylon Murray.