VIDEO: Sharks in the dark over U20 star's future plans?
REACTION: It looks like a tug-of-war is on the cards between the Lions and the Sharks over the service of Junior Springbok Batho Hlekani.
After the Currie Cup game on Saturday, in which the Lions came out on top against a young and inexperienced Sharks side coached by former Springbok wing JP Pietersen, both coaches mentioned getting Hlekani into their squad as soon as possible.
The 20-year-old flanker is currently contracted to the Sharks, but he has signed with the Lions and was only set to join them after the 2025 Currie Cup ahead of the 2025/26 URC season.
The Lions are intent on getting Hlekani to join them earlier, following the serious injury Izan Esterhuizen picked up in their first-round match on Saturday.
But Pietersen also mentioned the star Junior Bok, saying he will join up with their Currie Cup squad after his commitments with the Springboks are done.
Hlekani and fellow Junior Boks, Cheswill Jooste and Haashim Pead, were invited to train with Rassie Erasmus’ squad ahead of the Rugby Championship.
“We gave them off last week because of the amount of rugby they’ve played.
“It’s always been the plan. We will see how they go and if they fit in nicely.
“The U20 group will come in with very competent players that will boost us too. We’ll stay in the fight.
“Obviously, Batho won’t be available; he will be in the Springbok setup,” Pietersen said, clearly unaware of the plans that were mentioned by Lions coach Mzwakhe Nkosi just a few minutes earlier in the post-match press conference.
*Article continues below…
In explaining the Sharks’ struggles at Ellis Park on Saturday, he referred to the limited time they had to prepare as a young group.
“When we started, we had about 12 days of pre-season, the average age of the group is 23, and this is our first game together as a group.
“This is a challenge for young men to see if they can step up and see if they are capable of playing URC level and to compete in the Currie Cup.
“Yes, it will be a challenge.
“I think they did oraait.”
Pietersen pointed out what the Sharks needed to work on, saying: “We need cohesion. It’s a group that is playing together for the first time.
The coach said he wasn’t too concerned about the defence, even though the Sharks leaked nine tries on the night.
“If you look at the Lions’ attack, they’ve been together for five weeks pre-season. And it’s a group of players that’s been with the Lions for three-plus years.
“Do they have synergy? Yes, do they have the experience? Yes, we don’t have the experience.
“Defensively, we weren’t out there today [Saturday], but it doesn’t mean it’s a defence issue.
“We will rectify it. We are a young group, and we will fight. As the Sharks, we will always come back, and we will fight again.”
NEW IN THE APP: Official World Rugby Rankings hub! Compare team rankings side-by-side, with data going back 20 years.
Download the RugbyPass app on the App Store (iOS) and Google Play (Android) now!
