Sharks XV aim for Currie Cup redemption with Junior Springbok talents

The Sharks XV reflected deeply on a disappointing week ahead of their third-round Currie Cup clash against the Cheetahs in Durban (5.10pm kick-off) on Saturday afternoon.

After being walloped 64-0 by the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld this past weekend, the Sharks have set their sights on turning their fortunes around as they continue to invest in young players for the tournament.

Despite the heavy defeat, there is still positivity in the camp, and according to head coach JP Pietersen, they’ve prepared well for the onslaught from their Free State counterparts.

“We are only two games in and there are still a lot more left to play in the competition,” Pietersen said on Thursday.

He announced a side brimming with Junior Springboks for the duel at the Sugar Ray Xulu Stadium in Clermont.

Exciting flyhalf Vusi Moyo will partner scrumhalf Bradley Davids in a brand new half-back pairing, while Jaco Williams shifts to fullback. In the midfield and on the wing, Pietersen opted to strengthen the side with more experienced campaigners.

“We spoke honestly on Monday about our performance and how we could fix it,” Pietersen said about their preparation.

“Plum (John Plumtree, Sharks URC head coach) and Neil (Powell, director of rugby) spoke to the boys and told them this is part of the process of what we are doing, and it might not be working now. But it was good for them to speak to the boys.”

According to Pietersen, the Cheetahs will be a bit of an unknown factor, especially with their new coaching staff of Frans Steyn and Ruan Pienaar. The duo is, of course, former teammates of Pietersen at the Boks and Sharks.

He said they are preparing for a physical onslaught, and every team will target them in that department because of their youngsters.

“They (the Cheetahs) couldn’t get over the line against Boland in the first round, but played well against the Pumas (last weekend). It was some exciting plays. They are very good with their set piece with Victor (Sekekete) and they have an exciting scrumhalf in Jandre Nel, who scored four tries.

“You can see they want to speed the game up and play around the nine with quick counter attacks. It is an unknown team, but they will test us. We just need to front up to that. It is our first home game, and the boys are excited, especially to see how the stadium looks.

“We had a good training day on Thursday, but only time will tell how we go on Saturday.”

Sharks XV: 15 Jaco Williams, 14 Phiko Sobahle, 13 Diego Appollis, 12 Marnus Potgieter, 11 Yaw Penxe, 10 Vusi Moyo, 9 Bradley Davids, 8 Nick Hatton (captain), 7 Matt Ramao, 6 Tino Mavesere, 5 Corne Rahl, 4 Gideon Koegelenberg, 3 Lee-Marvin Mazibuko, 2 Jacques Marais, 1 Phatu Ganyane.

Replacements: 16 Willem van den Hever, 17 Simphiwe Ngobese, 18 Dian Heunis, 19 Coetzee le Roux, 20 Jannes Potgieter, 21 Ceano Everson, 22 Jean Smith, 23 Albie Bester.