Sharks' youngsters ready for Bulls
CURRIE CUP SPOTLIGHT: The Sharks will want to capitalise on the momentum of a positive pre-season when their take on the Blue Bulls this weekend.
Despite missing a number of senior players duo to Springboks duty or Japanese commitments, the Sharks managed to produce a 19-17 win over French Top 14 Bordeaux in a Currie Cup warm-up match at the Moses Mabhida Stadium on Friday.
“The first half was really difficult for the French because we had the wind behind us and we knew there would be a big onslaught from them in the second half but I thought our defence was really outstanding except for those two tries right at the end,” head coach Robert told the Sharks official website, adding: “Letting in two soft tries was disappointing.
“But we made a lot of changes and wanted to give everyone a run,”
“I thought it was a good exercise although the conditions weren’t great which was a real pity,” the coach admitted.
“But I thought the boys did really well in their first outing. The youngsters played really well, I was very happy with their contributions.”
One of those was Aphelele Fassi whose 60m try, a wonderfully exciting solo effort, took the wind out of the visitors’ sails.
“He’s a kid with lots of talent and I’m really looking forward to seeing how he goes in the Currie Cup this year,” said du Preez.
“But singling out individual players isn’t fair, I just thought all the boys who pulled on the jersey for the first time did really well, I was very impressed with the effort out there, we had to control a lot of scraps on the floor, the loose balls and their reactions were really great.”
Du Preez also lauded the contribution of Nick Easter who has recently joined the team as breakdown coach.
“Nick has been here for a week and doing the breakdown with the team, he’s a guy with loads of experience as a rugby player and I’m sure the forwards, in particular, will learn a lot from him. He’s been coaching at Harlequins as defensive coach for the last couple of years so he comes with a lot of value. It’s great to have him with us and we’re all hoping to learn a lot from him.”
The coach confirmed that that the team suffered no injuries and that they could now look ahead to their first Currie Cup fixture against the Blue Bulls, who recorded a 34-12 win over the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein in Round one.
“I think this match was exactly what we needed for preparing for the Bulls, having said that, the Bulls beat the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein quite impressively so it’s going to be a very tough game,”
Source: @TheSharksZA
Photo credit: Wayne Seagreen
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