Season preview: Sharks
by Gavin Rich 21 February 2012, 08:47
It is now five years since Bryan Habana broke the Sharks’ hearts with a last-gasp try that stole the Super 14 title, and the bragging rights for becoming the first South African team to win the title, from under their noses.
As the next edition of what is now known as Vodacom Super Rugby approaches, the ghost of Habana’s try should still be haunting the Durban franchise as they continue their quest for a trophy they should have won by now considering their consistency as one of the top teams in the early years of the Sanzar tournament.
For a long time the Sharks were the accepted South African flag-bearers in the competition. But while they had played in two finals before the loss to the Bulls in the memorable Durban final in 2007, they appear to have been travelling in the opposite direction since then. They haven’t made the semifinals since Dick Muir’s team were beaten at that stage by the Waratahs in Sydney in 2008.
Last year they did make the extended play-offs by virtue of them sneaking into the top six with a great win in an excellent game against the Bulls at Loftus, but had no price travelling to New Zealand for a knock-out match against the Crusaders.
Coach John Plumtree will be hoping his team can rekindle the spirit of that Loftus game and do consistently this year what last season they could only do occasionally.
The biggest challenge, but one the Sharks coaches should relish, is the change in culture in the playing personnel following the departure of stalwarts and long-time team leaders John Smit and Stefan Terblanche.
Plumtree surprised a lot of people when he chose Keegan Daniel as his captain ahead of the favourite, Bismarck du Plessis, yet it was a decision that was made easier by Daniel’s excellent captaincy in last year’s Currie Cup
“I was impressed with the way Keegan led the team in what was a completely new role for him last year, and he led the side well in what was a difficult situation with the Springboks away at the World Cup and the pack looking really inexperienced,” said Plumtree.
“Bismarck is of course also a good leader, and the key for us is that we are going to have rely on a group of leaders rather than just one captain. We are going through a change of culture and a changing of the guard.
“When I arrived in Durban guys like JP Pietersen, Bismarck and Keegan were young players making their way, but that has changed now. Five years later those are the guys we are going to be looking to for leadership and it is going to be crucial for us that their experience comes through.”
The Sharks are the one South African franchise that appears to have improved depth in some key areas during the off-season, particularly at centre, where Tim Whitehead has apparently been a revelation since moving to Durban from Cape Town and the switch of JP Pietersen to outside centre has brought an edge that was previously missing.
Marius Joubert has now reached the required level of conditioning after arriving back from France short of both a gallop and the necessary muscle.
QUESTION MARKS
But there are question marks, most notably over the front row, a previous area of acknowledged strength.
Beast Mtawarira’s broken leg, which has ruled the Springbok out for the first half of the season, leaves the Sharks one injury away from a real crisis. The irony is that what is missed this year in comparison to 12 months ago is the versatility of former Bok captain Smit.
The prop situation became more desperate when young Julian Redelinghuys went over on an ankle against the Kings the other night, leaving the Sharks looking for reinforcements from outside of the region.
Once it becomes clear if or who they will be acquiring, we might be better placed to make a prediction about the coming season.
For now though, what is apparent is that although there has been an improvement in depth, and some key players may be better equipped from a conditioning aspect (Meyer Bosman arrived at the Sharks requiring rehabilitation after a groin operation last year), they will be going into the season with pretty much the same starting team that finished the previous one.
The changes are not negligible though, with Riaan Viljoen moving down from Kimberley to add his siege-gun boot to the mix from fullback, and with Whitehead’s distribution skills nothing to scoff at.
A name that will be missing from the Sharks starting team in the early stages though is Willem Alberts, and he was the one consistent performer in the early part of a 2011 season which was a case of too little too late.
One of the problems last year was the Sharks’ inability to replicate the quick-paced approach that had won them the Currie Cup in October 2010.
It could have been that their approach required them to be fitter than they were for most of the first part of the season, remembering that the humidity has a debilitating effect on rugby played in Durban through until April.
But Plumtree is clever enough to figure out that the other teams also cottoned on to how the Sharks were playing, with the number of players committed to the breakdowns a key to the success or failure of the Sharks' game.
This is what really thwarted the Sharks' game last year, so we can expect them to mix up their game a lot more in 2012.
Flyhalf Patrick Lambie will be a pivotal player in this regard with his decision making, and much of the Sharks’ hopes of achieving the first objective, which is to top the South African conference, depend on him.
The biggest step towards going better is for them to improve their success rate in home derbies – last year they lost to both the Stormers and the Bulls in Durban. They get an early taste of derbies this season, with the opener against the Bulls in Pretoria on Friday being followed by a trip to Cape Town the following week.
Then it is back to Durban for two games before the Sharks head overseas. They will be wanting to build a buffer before they tour, and if the Bulls and Stormers are victims in the early stages, their quest for Conference honours will be considerably strengthened.
SHARKS RECORD IN 2011
Played 16 Won 10 (62,5%) Drawn 1 Lost 5
PLAYERS IN
Tim Whitehead (Stormers)
Riaan Viljoen (Cheetahs)
Marius Joubert (Clermont)
PLAYERS OUT
John Smit (Saracens)
Stefan Terblanche (Ulster)
Gerhard Mostert (Stade Francaise)
Adi Jacobs (released)
Jacques-Louis Potgieter (France)
PRE-SEASON FORM
The Sharks have only played two low-key friendlies in the build-up to the new season, easily beating the Boland Cavaliers in Durban and the Kings in Port Elizabeth. Time will tell whether the easier warm-up games will work for the Sharks or work against them.
PREVIOUS FINISHES (last five years)
Super Rugby
2011 6th
Super 14
2010 9th
2009 6th
2008 3rd
2007 2nd
SHARKS FIXTURES
24 February Bulls (away)
3 March Stormers (away)
10 March Lions (home)
17 March Reds (home)
24 March Waratahs (away)
31 March Brumbies (away)
6 April Hurricanes (away)
13 April Blues (away)
21 April Chiefs (home)
Bye
5 May Highlanders (home)
12 May Western Force (home)
19 May Cheetahs (away)
26 May Stormers (home)
2 June Lions (away)
Break for June tests
Bye
7 July Bulls (home)
14 July Cheetahs (home)