Edinburgh v Sharks - teams and prediction

FRIDAY PREVIEW: Roll up your sleeves because it is officially ‘moving weekend’ in Round 15 of the United Rugby Championship.

Why? Because this weekend could determine who stays in the Top Four, who moves out of the Top Eight, and who potentially moves into the Top Eight.

First up on Friday is the Sharks (fourth in the standings) away against Edinburgh (eighth) at the Edinburgh Stadium in the heart of Scotland.

A Sharks win will pretty much confirm they will finish in the top four, as the gap between fourth and fifth (Munster) will then be into double figures with just three games to play.

And the Sharks’ game against Edinburgh on Friday evening could help out fellow South African teams, the Stormers and even the Lions, to gain access to that lucrative Top Eight.

Munster are six points behind the Sharks and can catch up with the Sharks if they beat the Bulls in Limerick on Saturday night and the Durbanites fall prey to Edinburgh.

Munster have some tough derbies coming up, so a Bulls win will hurt their challenge for another finish in the top four (last year they finished top).

A Sharks win over Edinburgh will set back the eighth-placed Edinburgh and help the Stormers, who are two places behind the Scottish side but just one point behind them – 36 points against 35. The Stormers should beat Connacht in Cape Town, so a positive result for the Sharks will help propel their coastal rivals into the top eight.

As expected, Sharks coach John Plumtree hauled out the big guns for this vital clash, which sees Springbok lock Eben Etzebeth leading a star-studded side including the likes of Lukhanho Am, Andre Esterhuizen, the Henrikse brothers Jaden and Jordan – quite frankly, the whole caboodle.

But Plumtree is very realistic about the challenge ahead. He knows some of his Bok charges are back after weeks on the sideline,s which means they could very well be rusty and out of form.

Added to that, the 5G pitch is another stumbling block. It is not something South Africans have grown accustomed to, and some adapt quicker than others.

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“Everyone is available, the first time since Glasgow [game], which seems like a long time ago,” the Sharks coach said from Edinburgh on Thursday after the team announcement.

“It’s a little bit of a relief. The key thing for us is just to get the team going now.

“It is a strong Sharks side on paper, but the challenge will be for us to get our game going. A lot of the boys haven’t played for a while, four or five of them.

“Siya [Kolisi] has done a good job in that space [as captain] and will be good for him just to focus on his game and allow Eben to make the big calls.”

“We are the third South African side that they are playing in a row now, so they obviously did a lot of homework around the South African teams.”

Plumtree spoke about the threats in the Edinburgh side, especially with them coming off two wins over the Lions and the Bulls in their last two games.

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“They are two from two and looking to be three from three.

“At home, very tough side. Their pack is full of internationals, they’ve got two outstanding nines, their backs loaded with flair, so they’re a very balanced team and very hard to beat at home.

“We know how massive this challenge is.

“That is what the horizon looks like. But we need to get a result tomorrow [Saturday]. We are on a two-week tour, and this is the first game.

“It’s a tough task over here, playing on a 5G pitch which we are not used to. We trained on one yesterday, it was good.”

Edinburgh beat the Lions and the Bulls in the Challenge Cup over the past two weekends which will give them a lot of confidence.

The Sharks have had some inconsistent results, such as their big loss against the Lions and going to beat them a week later, while also almost succumbing to lowly rated Zebre.

For Edinburgh, Scotland international back-row Ben Muncaster returns after the versatile back-row featured from the bench in last week’s quarterfinal win against the Bulls in the place of Hamish Watson, who gets a rest.

Muncaster is one of five changes made by head coach Sean Everitt.

Props Pierre Schoeman and D’arcy Rae start in place of Boan Venter and Javan Sebastian (concussion), while Scotland internationals Ali Price and Harry Paterson feature in the backs, with Ben Vellacott (foot) injured and Darcy Graham rested.

Looking ahead to the clash against the Sharks – currently sitting in fourth place in the Championship – Edinburgh assistant coach Scott Mathie, also a former Sharks coach just like Everitt, painted a clear picture of the Durban side’s strengths.

“Having a look at their squad, they’re probably going to put out 13 Springboks in their starting team and probably about 18 or 19 in the 23. It’s a massive challenge, but an exciting one.”

TEAM ANNOUNCEMENT: This one is going to big as Sharks bring back some Bokshttps://t.co/7oq0KFaOqv

— rugby365.com (@rugby365com) April 17, 2025

The Edinburgh attack has shown noticeable improvements in recent weeks, and Mathie credits the players’ buy-in to the coaching plan. Shooting out of the blocks in last weekend’s European win over the Bulls, Edinburgh scored four first-half tries, showcasing a fiery intent from the get-go.

“Yes, it’s good. I think just trusting in the plan,” continued Mathie. “I think when you first come in, we put things in place, and the boys have really bought in. Things take time. I think the guys are genuinely enjoying how we go about our game. We’re definitely getting some reward for it.”

The victory over the Bulls last weekend provided a significant confidence boost, and Mathie acknowledged the positive impact of that result.

When reflecting on captain Grant Gilchrist’s description of the first half as “world class,” Mathie agreed, stating, “It was really exciting. You go against the Bulls outfit, who again boast a lot of talented individuals. I think just to come out here and show what we can do with ball in hand. Defensively, I thought we were really stoic.

“They’re coming with a team that’s full of Springboks.”

Attack and Backs Coach Scott Mathie chats to media ahead of Friday’s @SharksRugby clash 🗣️

🎟️ https://t.co/faDIgYLqvo pic.twitter.com/yiQFB7n0Nu

— Edinburgh Rugby (@EdinburghRugby) April 15, 2025

“Turned a lot of ball over, which gives us a lot of broken play opportunities too. I think on both sides of the ball, it was a really fast start. It was exactly what you want at home.”

Despite the impressive win against the Bulls, Mathie insists the pursuit of improvement never stops.

When asked if that knockout performance was enough, he replied, “You’re always chasing the perfect performance. I think for any negative you might look at it, you’ve got to look at the positive too. I think in the past, we might have let that game slip.

“There’s some stoicism there, and some fight, and some purpose is being shown from the boys. That came to the fore at the back end of that game. To withstand that Bulls onslaught and to come out of it, I think the boys took a lot of confidence from that.”

Edinburgh v Sharks
(Edinburgh Stadium, Edinburgh – Kick-off: 19.35 IRE & UK / 20.35 ITA / 20.35 SA)

Prediction:

@rugby365: Edinburgh by 11 points

Sharks: 15 Aphelele Fassie, 14 Ethan Hooker, 13 Lukhanyo Am, 12 Andre Esterhuizen, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Jordan Hendrikse, 9 Jaden Hendrikste, 8 Siya Kolisi, 7 Vincent Tshituka, 6 Phepsi Buthelezi, 5 Emile van Heerden, 4 Eben Etzebeth (captain), 3 Vincent Koch, 2 Bongi Mbonambi, 1 Ox Nche
Replacements: 16 Fez Mbatha, 17 Ntuthuko Mchunu, 18 Hanro Jacobs, 19 Jason Jenkins, 20 James Venter, 21 Grant Williams, 22 Siya Masuku, 23 Jurenzo Julius

Edinburgh: 15⁠ ⁠Wes Goosen, 14⁠ ⁠Harry Paterson, 13⁠ ⁠Matt Currie, 12⁠ ⁠James Lang, 11⁠ ⁠Ross McCann, 10⁠ ⁠Ross Thompson, 9⁠ ⁠Ali Price, 8. ⁠Magnus Bradbury, 7⁠ ⁠Ben Muncaster, 6⁠ ⁠Jamie Ritchie, 5 ⁠Grant Gilchrist, 4 ⁠Sam Skinner, 3 ⁠D’arcy Rae, 2 ⁠Ewan Ashman, 1 ⁠Pierre Schoeman
Replacements: 16 ⁠Dave Cherry, 17⁠ ⁠Boan Venter, 18 ⁠Angus Williams, 19⁠ ⁠Glen Young, 20⁠ ⁠Freddy Douglas, 21 ⁠Charlie Shiel, 22 ⁠Cammy Scott, 23 ⁠Mosese Tuipulotu

Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland)
Assistant Referees: Mike Adamson (Scotland), Jonny Perriam (Scotland)
TMO: Brian McNeice (Ireland)