The Stormers signed off their Super Rugby year in style, beating the Sharks 27-16 at Newlands on Saturday.
Heading into the clash, the hosts were already out of contention for a playoff spot.
The Sharks, on the other hand, were just handed a boost in their quest to reach the playoffs when the Bulls beat the Jaguares at Loftus earlier in the afternoon.
But it was coach Robbie Fleck’s Stormers who refused to lose in front of a rather disappointing Newlands crowd.
After an early Sharks penalty, the Stormers hit back with the first try of the match when inside centre Damian de Allende cut through the Durbanites' midfield to offload to lock and Man of the Match Cobus Wiese for the five-pointer.
Josh Stander, who replaced injured flyhalf Jean-Luc du Plessis before kickoff, kicked the conversion (7-3).
After two more Sharks penalties by Robert du Preez, the Stormers regained the lead on the half-hour mark when EW Viljoen crashed over in the corner (14-9).
With the Sharks pinned in their own half, a Du Preez exit kick was then gathered by Stormers fullback Dillyn Leyds who started an excellent counterattack in his 50th game.
Leyds then offloaded the ball in the tackle to Sikhumbuzo Notshe, who found Raymond Rhule on his outside to make it 21-9 in favour of the hosts at the break.
The Sharks fought back hard from the first whistle after the break and were rewarded after 10 phases when ex-Stormers wing Kobus van Wyk dotted down in the 43rd minute (21-16).
With the scores reading 24-16 after a penalty apiece, the Sharks thought they scored a try through Lukhanyo Am.
Referee Jaco Peyper called for the review and despite Am handing off Pieter-Steph du Toit before being expertly tackled by Leyds in-goal and losing the ball, it was found that Beast Mtawarira ran an obstructive line before passing the ball to Bok teammate Am.
That brought an end to any hope the Sharks had of winning the match, as the Stormers added another late penalty to seal the victory.