Toulouse showed their intent to take on and beat the Hollywoodbets Sharks in their own backyard when they rested some key players from their Top 14 match last weekend in preparation for the challenge they will face in their Investec Champions Cup group match.
While the Sharks, with their many Springboks even when some of those players are missing because of injury, have built up winning momentum at Hollywoodbets Kings Park, the kings of Europe have been in imperious form in their quest to make a perfect start to their quest to retaining the title they won by beating Leinster in extra time of last year’s final at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London.
The six-time Champions Cup winners smashed Ulster 61-22 at home, which is no mean feat against the renowned Irish provincial team, before hammering Exeter Chiefs 64-21 at Sandy Park.
Yes, the same Exeter Chiefs who turned in a physical performance in defeat to the Sharks at Kings Park the previous week.
With full points from their first two games, Toulouse are where they want to be on their Pool log, but they won’t be satisfied with any less than a 100 per cent record that will give them home ground advantage in the various knockout games on the road to the final, which this year will be played in Cardiff in May (the competition, like soccer’s European Cup, has a destination final).
It was for that reason that Antoine Dupont, Thomas Ramos and the experienced England international Jack Willis, who is a key player for Toulouse, were rested for their narrow defeat to La Rochelle last Saturday.
For Dupont it will be a rare visit outside of Europe, and he’s played just 24 minutes of rugby outside of the northern hemisphere, that being in his only international appearance in this country which happened to be in Durban in 2017.
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WORKING A PLAN TO NEUTRALISE DUPONT
The Sharks, who need to win to keep their own Champions Cup hopes alive after losing so heavily to Leicester Tigers last time out, therefore need to prime themselves to stop the man many believe is the world’s greatest player.
And that is a task that has been made tougher by one of four law amendments to be introduced in Saturday’s game - the one that protects the halfbacks by making it illegal to play the scrumhalf within a metre of the tackle, ruck or maul, and which dictates that the middle tunnel is now the offside line for the opposition scrumhalf in a set scrum.
It is something the Sharks have been working hard on being prepared for, however, and their Bok World Cup winning loosehead prop Ox Nche says a plan is being hatched by the hosts.
“It will be a more free flowing game and he will have a bit more time and safety around the ruck,” said Nche in an online press conference on Tuesday.
“We know we have to be prepared for it, and we need to do what we need to do, like set early. It is something we have been practising so we don’t get caught with our pants down. He is a special player who is a big part of how Toulouse play. We will do our analysis on him to see how we can neutralise him.”
Back at it🦈🖤🤍
— Retshegofaditswe Nche (@oxnche) January 7, 2025
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OX THRIVES ON SUCH CHALLENGES
Nche has played in and won a World Cup final, so he is no stranger to pressure and thriving in the face of it.
Listening to him talk, it sounds like he is relishing the prospect of facing a full-strength Toulouse and says it will be one of the most exciting games he plays in all year.
“They have shown their class and quality, and they are bringing a full-strength team,” he said.
“I enjoy testing myself against the best in the world and not many teams come close to Toulouse in terms of how they play.”
Unsurprisingly, as the man who says salads never win scrum battles, he is particularly looking forward to the scrum battle.
“In the Top 14 it is all about the scrum and Toulouse have a very strong pack. They are probably the best in France when on form. They have a system that works for them and they work well together. It’s going to be a good challenge for us, and I am looking forward to it.”
The Sharks team will be announced on Friday afternoon, as per the protocols, but it appears that they will be strengthened where they need it most against these opponents - meaning in the forward pack.
The Bok spearheads Eben Etzebeth and Bongi Mbonambi have been sorely missed in the Sharks’ most recent matches, but they are back in training and ready to play.
The news of course is less positive when it comes to other areas of the Sharks game, with Aphelele Fassi and Andre Esterhuizen, two influential Bok backs, both set to miss out due to the injuries sustained in the recent narrow defeat to the DHL Stormers in their Cape Town Vodacom United Rugby Championship derby.
This will be one for the books! 🔥
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