Cell C Sharks Director of Rugby Jake White has named his team to play the Bulls in Saturday’s opening Vodacom Super Rugby clash against the Bulls at Growthpoint Kings Park.
Getting off to a good start is vital to the team’s tournament aims and there is no discounting the value of winning early to set up a platform for ongoing success. The team he has named includes 11 Springboks in the starting line-up with a further three on the bench as he has been able to name pretty much a full-strength side.
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Wing Odwa Ndungane admits that they know what is coming from the Bulls who can be relied on to play a similar style of rugby we’ve grown accustomed to.
“We know what to expect,” he says, “they always bring physicality and the back three can expect a lot of high balls to field. We have to be able to deal with their strengths, we’ve had a good week of preparation and so hopefully it all comes together on Saturday. On paper, we have one of the strongest teams, but we cannot just relax and expect to arrive and win the games. We have to work really hard and front up on game-day.”
Jake White admits that a big crowd will certainly spur the players onto a performance worthy of the team’s name.
“The first couple of games here, there’s a buzz in Durban, people want to come and watch games here, maybe to have the home games early on and get the whole crowd behind us is going to be a bonus. Had we gone away at the start and lost that opportunity for our home fans to come and watch this new team, perhaps they wouldn’t have had the same reward. For us, with the new set up, maybe playing the first few games at home and having the fans behind us could be a massive advantage.”
The match kicks off at 19:10 on Saturday evening with the parking gates opening at 4pm, the turnstiles at 16:30 and the curtain-raiser between the Tiger Sharks and Bulls Sharks (comprising Vodacom Cup players) taking place at 16:30.
Cell C Sharks: 15 SP Marais, 14 Odwa Ndungane, 13 Paul Jordaan, 12 Frans Steyn, 11 Lwazi Mvovo, 10 Patrick Lambie, 9 Cobus Reinach, 8 Ryan Kankowski, 7 Willem Alberts, 6 Marcell Coetzee, 5 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 4 Anton Bresler, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis (Captain), 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Replacements: 16 Kyle Cooper, 17 Dale Chadwick, 18 Lourens Adriaanse, 19 Stephan Lewies, 20 Jean Deysel, 21 Charl McLeod, 22 Heimar Williams, 23 S’bura Sithole.
Not the STRONGEST team the Sharks could have chosen!
Ryan Kankowski is much like Spies, only shines in a loose game.
Cobus Reinach is not nearly as good as Charl McLeod.
Paul Jordaan has oodles of talent, but not the best defender in the world.
Anton Bresler has his moments but not anywhere near Bokke contention.
Great Sharks bench.
Other than that, could be a very long afternoon / night for the Bulls.
Good team and a lot of good players not in the match 22
2 @ Sharks_forever:
It’s a match 23 from this year in Super Rugby, not just 22 players.
@ grootblousmile:Hi Rudi,look for me it is not so much about whether you rate a player or not, but more about how the new coach gets them into a unit. Also getting them to play for the jersey and for each other. Only time will tell
You can have the best players in the world, but unless they play with pride and passion they ain’t gonna win jack shit.
And yes match day 23, I forgot my bad.
Puma you need to come out of hibernation bro lol
GBS you so slow putting up the Sharks team we already commented on the Bulls thread. Wont repeat myself so will just go and copy and paste my post there and put it up here.
7 @ Sharks_forever:
Howzit Bro,
I have posted about our team on the Bulls thread as nothing was up here at the time and Snoek put up our team there.
What you think of the team?
Players that were not available or did not get selected.
JPP
Daniel
Botes
Mthembu
Fisher
Esterhuizen
Swiel
Here is my post on our team from the Bulls thread I put up earlier.
My only complaint would be that I would rather McLeod started and also have Sweil on the bench to cover flyhalf and fullback and leave out H. Williams or Sibura as we now don’t have cover for flyhalf or Fullback. I would rather have Fred on the bench than Sweil but Fred only covers flyhalf. Other than that is a powerful team Jake has put out.
Remember as well the weather is bloody cooking hot here and the humidity is extreme right now. Saturday is forecast for hotter and humidity higher. So expecting a hard fought battle like we had against Stormers last year when the weather was similar. As long as we come out with a win I will be happy bonus points can come later.
Also like the fact that we have Deysel covering Alberts. They are like for like and one comes off we have a fresh player in the same mold. Gonna be a great game to watch just doubt we will see a lot of running.
10 @ Sharks_forever:
Surprised that Esterhuizen never made the bench. He was outstanding against Sarries. Then again Williams was very good for us in the Currie cup. I still feel Jake should have started with McLeod.
8 @ Puma:
I am doing 700 things at the same time, Oompie… that’s why I want okes like you to become a Sharks Author
At the moment I do most of the Articles, the technical aspects on the site, the whole new Marketing leg of R-T, the Delmas Rugby Day, fighting with the Web Hosts, new competitions, adverts, Business Cards, Posters, PVC Banner for our marketing Trailer… it’s a full time job!
And don’t forget, I run a heavy IT Business and funeral thingy and some other stuff too… but I still have only 2 hands, 2 eyes, 2 ears, 1 mouth.
Been at the office all ours for 2 weeks now… getting 4 or 5 hours sleep at most.
I’m a machines, all rolled into one…
My wife greets me with the hand already and the dogs bark at me…. I’m such a stranger.
10 @ Sharks_forever:
What you think of no cover for fullback and flyhalf? I might have for that reason had Swiel on the bench, although I rate right now Fred higher as a flyhalf, though he only plays flyhalf and think scrumhalf and we have a cover for scrumhalf.
Hey, you Sharkies, go join the NEW COMPETITION!
13 @ grootblousmile:
You are busy boet. Let Snoek put up some articles then for Sharks. He posted the team on the Bulls thread in just about the exact time the Sharks got announced. I am also quite busy right now but you know I don’t want to do any author thing. Shark_Forever is also very busy right now. Snoek could do it for us or ask Grumpy.
2 @ Sharks_forever:
It is a good team but really we must not underestimate the Bulls this will be closer than most think.
15 @ grootblousmile:
Have not seen it will go have a look at it now.
Players that were not available or did not get selected.
JPP
Daniel
Botes
Mthembu
Fisher
Esterhuizen
Swiel
Herbst
Marais
Hewitt
Van Tonder
Mondi
Whitehead
Oosthuizen
Zeilinga
Dell
Chavhanga
Ungerer
Pooms, Esterhuizen got knocked out in a club match so out for this week, also do not think for 1 minute I think we just going to walk this game. We ain’t won a thing yet
@ Puma:
lol who is grumpy?
Frans Steyn will cover flyhalf Pooms
Also Jordaan played 10 until he left school
I think Deysel is still scared of Paul Willemse and how the laaite completely bulldozed him hehe.
I think if the game is allowed to flow, so there is not too many scrums then the Bulls could make a match of it. Sharks will have a licence to run it and really throw the ball around, if they knock it on I hope the ref gives the Bulls as much advantage is possible as a bulls scrum will just be a sharks penalty anyway.
I somehow have a gutt feeling Ludeke has a few tricks up his sleeve.
3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis (Captain), 1 Tendai Mtawarira vs 3 Werner Kruger, 2 Callie Visagie, 1 Dean Greyling
Dean gives you some of those games a season where he is just everywhere like an extra loose forward.
The key matchups will be
8 Pierre Spies, 7 Jacques du Plessis, 6 Jono Ross, vs 8 Ryan Kankowski, 7 Willem Alberts, 6 Marcell Coetzee
The bulls will have superior locks, play both Paul and Flip will shore up our scrum a lot, but by how much?
Scrums and the referees definition of the rules at ruck will be key.
The Bulls have the better backline, if the forward battle is going to be even.
21 @ Sharks_forever:
Grumpy is Rye from keo he blogs here with us now so another Shark here is great.
20 @ Sharks_forever:
Okay never knew that about Esterhuizen. Also read that Fisher picked up a shoulder injury and think Keegan is carrying a slight injury still.
Going to be a tough game the Bulls will be tough to beat and better than most give them credit for. The weather will play a huge roll as well as we in a mini heat wave right now with high humidity. Just hope we can win this as that would be a good start. Bonus points can come later. Also hope we come away from this game injury free.
25 @ MacroBull:
Bud the Sharks back line is just as good and don’t underestimate how good PSDT is he put Eben in the CC final under a lot of pressure and
Berserker is tough as he’ll many under estimate him but he was brilliant for us in 2012 before he got injured. This sill be a tough game and the weather will make it difficult for both sides. It will be a close game.
@ Puma:
Sorry typo posting from my iPad and making too many errors.
Beserker = Bresler
@ Puma:
Morning Puma
I’m not so sure about PSdT yet, he did look good in the final, but so did all the Sharks, and not one WP player stood out, collectively we were stuffed up. The week before that in Durban , Du Toit looked less than ordinary.
I’m not saying he can’t become a great player, I’m just not sold on him yet, as he hasn’t played anywhere near enough top flight rugby to justify the hype IMO.
If he can stay injury free and get through the SR 2014 and produce game in and game out, maybe then we will have an indication, but so far we have just heard from experts that he could be a great player, but haven’t seen him provide proof yet
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