When Hollywoodbets Sharks coach JP Pietersen referenced his team’s injuries after last week’s emphatic 30-19 win over the DHL Stormers in Cape Town it was reasonable to expect that his men might be a bit under-powered for Saturday’s return derby at Hollywoodbets Kings Park.
However, that has proved far from the case, with the team announced by Pietersen on Friday looking considerably stronger than the one that prevailed at the DHL Stadium - at least on paper. Of course, Pietersen packed his bench last week, with Springbok skipper Siya Kolisi returning from a brief rest by being among the impact subs, and it was the same story for fellow Boks Ox Nche and Grant Williams.
All three of those players have been returned to the starting team for Saturday’s game against their coastal rivals, and there’s also been the addition of another returning Bok in the form of Edwill van der Merwe, who replaces Yaw Penxe on the right wing.
Pietersen complained about injuries at loose-forward, and it is true that he has lost Emmanuel Tshituka to an injury sustained in last week’s bruising game. But Phepsi Buthelezi, so excellent last week, is there again this week, only this time he is at No 8, with Nick Hatton moving to the bench.
Kolisi will wear the No 6 jersey that Buthelezi wore last week while the younger Tshituka has been replaced in the starting team by his older and more experienced Bok capped brother, Vincent. That’s a good back row.
Jason Jenkins moves to the reserve bench this week, presumably to add oomph later in the game against the Stormers’ rated reserve bench (although the Cape side hasn’t gone 6/2 for this game), but young Corne Rahl, who starts in his place and sat out last week completely, is a highly promising young second row forward.
There is a completely new second row, with Nche being joined by the experienced Fez Mbatha and Hanro Jacobs in fronting the Stormers’ highly rated scrum unit.
The bench this week features Springboks in the form of Vincent Koch, who made way for Jacobs, Jenkins and Jaden Hendrikse, with the Sharks going 5/3 again, which means that Jurenzo Julius continues fulfilling the role of outside back reserve alongside flyhalf Siya Masuku.
The Sharks will be looking to the forwards to repeat what they did last week against a Stormers team that has been strengthened by the return of Evan Roos and Adre Smith, as well as a continuation on Jordan Hendrikse’s part of the form that drew a positive review from Bok coach Rassie Erasmus this week.
The Sharks recruitment team has long been pondering the No 10 situation but if Hendrikse can continue the way he played last week in opposition to Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu not only will the Sharks be halfway to winning the game, Hendrikse will also do his Bok chances a lot of good as well as allaying the concerns over the position at the Durban franchise.
Hollywoodbets Sharks team: Aphelele Fassi, Edwill van der Merwe, Ethan Hooker, Andre Esterhuizen (captain), Jaco Coetzee, Jordan Hendrikse, Grant Williams, Phepsi Buthelezi, Vincent Tshituka, Siya Kolisi, Emile van Heerden, Corne Rahl, Hanro Jacobs, Fez Mbatha, Ox Nche.
Replacements: Eduan Swart, Phatu Ganyane, Vincent Koch, Jason Jenkins, Nick Hatton, Jaden Hendrikse, Siya Masuku, Jurenzo Julius.