KZN won't be complacent against Lions
Still flushed with success after their win against a young Free State side, KZN’s Sharks will be looking to secure a spot in the main game on Saturday when they face the Golden Lions on Wednesday.
The sides run on at 3:30pm CAT (SA, GMT+2) and the team that leaves the field with a win has a strong chance of making it through to the unofficial final.
On paper KZN look like a good bet, particularly given the Golden Lions’ less than scintillating performance against Border earlier on, even though they eventually won that game 29-14.
KZN has not made it through to a Craven Week final since 1990. This is their big chance to break the drought. Unless the Lions are packing more punch than we’ve seen thus far, KZN is unlikely to give the opportunity away.
Sean Erasmus, who coaches the KZN side together with Barend Steyn, was cautiously optimistic but expects a hard match against the Gautengers. He said the team’s performance comes from hard preparation and “doing our homework”.
Erasmus said he is happy with the team’s performance particularly in attack and defence and added “we finished off most of our opportunities and tackled really well”.
However, he cautioned that KZN cannot be complacent against a side like the Lions which is renowned for its physical rugby.
KZN will need to be ready to face hard tackles and a tough physical match when they meet the Lions.
The side is big and powerful and have a danger-man in the form of flyhalf Jaco van der Walt. The Lions would do well to press for penalties and make headway on the scoreboard through van der Walt’s boot.
