It was 20 minutes or so of tension and madness that had the then Hollywoodbets Sharks coach John Plumtree feeling he might go into cardiac arrest. We are talking about May last year, the Vodacom URC quarterfinal in Durban, the day we saw a penalty shoot-out in South Africa at that level of rugby for the first time.
Munster were the opponents, they were level with the Sharks after fulltime, and level after extra time. So the game was to be decided by penalty kicks, with three players nominated by each team to take shots at goal from different positions of the field.
The Sharks prevailed, mostly due to the unnerved demeanour of their kickers, and in particular reserve scrumhalf Bardley Davids, but it was not without some controversy being added to further stoke the drama.
Sharks scrumhalf Jaden Hendrikse invoked the ire of the Munster players and support staff when he held up the proceedings by being treated for cramp.
Of course there’s gamesmanship when the penalty shoot-out stage is reached in the round ball game, so it was natural that there’d be an assumption that was what Hendrikse was doing, and he poured further fuel on the fames by appearing to wink at the man who was waiting to take the next Munster kick, Jack Crowley.
Crowley duly slotted his kick but it didn’t matter as Rory Scannell had missed earlier attempts and the Sharks prevailed 6-4 in the penalty shoot-out. But that did not stop Munster from complaining bitterly afterwards about the Sharks’ “gamesmanship” and in so doing the temperature between the two teams was considerably raised.
Games against Munster often become personal, and you can ask Glasgow Warriors about that as well as the DHL Stormers, with those two sides having started quite a bitter rivalry with the Limerick based team, and the events at Hollywoodbets Kings Park nine months ago will have conspired to add the Sharks to the list of rivals who bring spice to a clash with the Irish province.
Jaden Hendrikse’s brother Jordan, who is likely to line up at flyhalf for Saturday’s league return with Munster at the same Durban venue, knows Munster won’t have forgotten what happened on their last visit. And expects the battle on Saturday to be personal.
“That was (South African) rugby’s first penalty shoot-out. It was unique to be involved in it, and we know it will be a personal return to Durban for Munster,” said Hendrikse in a zoom press conference call.
“For us the main thing is the main thing, and that is to focus on the game. Jaden will be fine on on Saturday (if he is targeted). I know my brother, and that was a genuine cramp he suffered in that last game.”
The furore around the shoot-out earned that quarterfinal the moniker of “Winkgate”, but Hendrikse gave an assurance that the Sharks won’t be diverted by any sideshows.
“There was a lot of media comment afterwards about the wink. So this game may be personal for Munster. But for us it is just about getting the result. We want to move up the log. This is a vital home game and we can’t afford any mess-ups.”
Hendrikse is right about that. Indeed, while the game is also important for Munster’s challenge for a top four log finish, it is effectively a knock-out game for the Sharks, who after their two defeats on the highveld have now lost the ground they gained with their two good wins over the Stormers in late January.
They are six points currently off the top eight, and with the eighth placed Vodacom Bulls surely favourites to beat Cardiff at Loftus on Friday night, and the seventh placed Lions also likely to have the edge at home against Edinburgh, the Sharks might find themselves too far behind the top eight bracket should Munster reverse the result of the quarterfinal.
The stakes are high for both teams and that should ensure that Munster have most of their Ireland contingent on duty against what should be a Springbok laden Sharks team, The Sharks team is to be announced on Thursday.