By Craig Lewis
There is no doubt that the Sharks are at present in the habit of winning, with the team relaxed, confident and acutely aware of what their strengths are.
But they will also know just how quickly things can change, and that should keep them on their toes this Saturday when they face the Griquas at the Absa Stadium.
Over the past few weeks, the Sharks have certainly performed with aplomb, and even without key players and during periods of play when they’ve been under the cosh, they have had the composure to find ways to win.
However, things can just as easily start to unravel, as they learnt in 2009’s Super 14, and they can ill-afford to take their foot off the gas against the log-leading Griquas.
“We know Griquas will be hurting after their first loss of the season against the Bulls in a match they perhaps should have won,” Sharks coach John Plumtree said on Monday.
“They’ll be very physical and our forwards will need to muscle up.”
Unfortunately for the Sharks, though, a number of front-rowers are nursing injuries after Saturday’s bruising game against the Lions, with Deon Carstens carrying a niggle, Pat Cilliers suffering from a hamstring strain and young Wiehahn Herbst battling with a bit of a back injury.
All three will be very closely monitored throughout the week, and with the Sharks likely to be without their Tri-Nations Boks – including Jannie du Plessis – they will be desperately holding thumbs that things are looking a little brighter later in the week.
Nevertheless, Plumtree said he had expressed to the team that they would have to be ready to tackle numerous challenges during the next few crucial rounds of the Absa Currie Cup.
“This group is now going to take us through to the business end of the competition and they are the ones who will determine what position we are in when the Springboks return. In 2008 we were able to get onto a winning roll at about this stage in the tournament and we need to repeat that if we hope to be in a good position to make the play-offs later on.”
And this weekend the Sharks may well look to keep the ball in hand a bit more after having to make an inordinate amount of tackles against the Lions, which ultimately saw them drop off the pace and let in three tries in the last 10 minutes of the match.
Certainly, they will have more of a licence to attack if game-breakers such as Juan Martin Hernandez and Rory Kockott are passed fit for this game, but both may well need to be brought back slowly after being sidelined with an ankle and shoulder injury respectively.
Either way, the likes of Monty Dumond, Riaan Swanepoel, Andries Strauss and Stefan Terblanche are certainly steering the backline in the right direction as it is.
In addition, the Sharks will also have their second-row stocks bolstered in the near future, with both Johann Muller and Alistair Hargreaves not looking far away from a return to action.
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- This article was originally published on page 18 of Daily News on August 18, 2009
@OCO –
Sien jou Osama.
En julle ander outjies ook, later….
Tjorts, ek gaan donker stoep toe, n dop drink in die wind, te warm hier waar ek nou sit, en bef@k baie mozzies onder die lig….
@bdb – 10 000 –
Klik op pickandgo. Dis die eintlik site met al die stats
http://www.lassen.co.nz/pickandgo.php
@Supa Die Bloubul – Binne die log is daar baie links, as jy byvoorbeeld op die span naam klik kry jy sy toernooi geskiedenis. As jy op die hoeveeelheid wedstryde klik sien jy weer die results van daai 13 games.
@superBul –
Dankie. Dis baie interessant.
Sien die ‘pick and go’ webblad het ook hul eie rankings van die S14 spanne, volgens “IRB use for
ranking Test matches.”
Daarvolgens is ons SA spanne:
1. Bulls
7. Stormers
8. Sharks
12. Lions
14. Cheetahs
Hellooooooooo
… en toe gaat dit mal terwyl ek Midrand toe en op pad terug was….
@bdb – 10 000 – Ek vergewe jou die keer dat jy jou NICK verander het… geluk met ons BLOG se EERSTE 10 000, mag daar nog 10 000 x 10 000 x 10 000 comments wees soos tyd aangaan….
Super,
Ek sien daar want nogal interessant is. Die Bulls het meer wedstryde weg gewen teen die ander 4 SA spanne as wat ons tuis gewen het!
187@grootblousmile – Dankie, ek hou hom net vir ‘n dag so, dan is ek weer terug by ‘bdb’.
Wat duidelik ook is in daai stats is dat om die s14 te wen, moet jy minstens 83% van jou homegames wen.
tHE OTHER WEBSITE IS DOODSTIL.
Dont worry about the Sharks, they are looking too composed to be beaten by Griquas, who will have to play above themselves to take one off Natal. Be a good game though….Pity I will be in Germany shooting wild boar and cooking it afterwards, with a few steins of “apfelwoi”…..lifes a beach….then you die. 🙂
oh well…no one wants to talk to me.
later
@4man – I would but I missed you 🙁
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