Sharks are far from finished product
With a fit again Patrick Lambie at flyhalf, the Sharks have returned to improving on the simple things and it seems to have paid off as they now trail African Conference leaders, the Lions, by just two points.
"I am satisfied with where we are. We are evolving and learning all the time and are not at all the finished product yet.We know it is going to be a tough few weeks and I'm really happy with the attitude of the players in terms of how they dealt with the travel. There is a lot of character being shown by this group but we need to step up in terms of learning from the matches.
"There are simple options on the field that I don't think we take and when we do take them, then we can put two halves of rugby together where people find it difficult to live with us because of the players we have," Gold said.
The Sharks will now enjoy a lengthy six week break as they have a Round 14 bye, before the June break pops up – something that Gold is at ease about. However, their first match after the break is going to be crucial in determining who will top the Africa One conference.
"I'm at ease that we are not playing for the next six weeks but our first game back is the Lions. We are excited about playing them on our return because they are the best team in the country and we know we will need to train to that standard.
"It is going to be really tough as we feel it will be the same pace and intensity as the New Zealand teams we have played against. In terms of where we are on the log, I would rather have us being in the position we are, where we need to keep our noses ahead, than having to play catch-up.
"What happens in the other conferences is out of our control," he added.
A player who might be out for some time is Daniel du Preez who left the field with a suspected torn groin.
"Daniel du Preez looks to have torn his groin and it does not look like a fantastic tear. Hopefully it is not as bad as we anticipate," he stated.
Gold attempted to have Garth April and Lambie work as a 10-12 combination and will continue to look at the pair as a chance to give his regular midfielders Paul Jordaan and Andre Esterhuizen a break.
"It is something that I have been thinking about. I have been looking for opportunities to give our midfield a break. From a fluency and attacking point of view, it could be devastating with Pat, Garth and Willie le Roux as our three potential first receivers. We will look at that combination as an opportunity going forward," he said.
