The selection of Tito Bonilla in the Cell C Sharks team that will play a Carling Currie Cup game against the Vodacom Bulls at Loftus on Wednesday evening is a sure indication that Boeta Chamberlain will be back on United Rugby Championship duty this weekend.
We will have to wait until the team for Saturday’s URC match against Zebre Parma at Hollywoodbets Kings Park is announced on Thursday before we know whether Chamberlain will start at flyhalf ahead of Curwin Bosch or provide back-up off the bench. But the selection of the Argentine player in the team for Loftus does mean Chamberlain has been promoted and will be part of the match day squad for the URC game.
Bonilla was on the bench for the Sharks when they played the Scarlets in Durban last Friday night. While Bosch was criticised for his performance in that match, Bonilla was as poor when he came off the bench, with Bosch playing better rugby once he switched to covering the back field when Aphelele Fassi was replaced.
Chamberlain played for the Sharks in their last Currie Cup game against the Airlink Pumas in Nelspruit nearly two weeks ago and his accuracy from the kicking tee, with his eight penalties accounting for all the Sharks’ 24 points, would have been welcomed by the Sharks’ senior management.
It would mainly have been Chamberlain’s poor place-kicking that cost him his starting place in the URC team after he was seen as the first choice for the first part of the competition. Of the three frontline Sharks flyhalves, Chamberlain is probably the best when it comes to playing flat and committing opposing defenders. Former Maties Varsity Cup star Jordan Chait, who is on the bench for this game, might actually be the best of the lot when it comes to engaging opposition defensive systems and bringing players around him into the game, but he’s never been given an extended run to show what he can do.
The Sharks Currie Cup team is unbeaten and after dropping a game earlier in the competition, the Bulls will be highly motivated to beat them so the Durbanites will be pleased to be taking an experienced team to a venue that was a hoodoo ground for them until relatively recently, when a Morne Steyn red card for the Bulls contributed to a rare Sharks win at Loftus.
Hyron Andrews has moved down from URC duty to partner Emile van Heerden in a new second row, with James Venter again captaining from the side of the scrum and the excellent Cameron Wright, one of the better game managers when it comes to scrumhalves in this country, taking back the No9 jersey and also assuming the vice-captaincy in the absence of Jeremy Ward.
Former national age-group captain Ward is back in the URC team as a replacement for Lukhanyo Am at outside centre while the Springbok is busy with his stint playing for the Kobe Steelers in Japan.
CELL C SHARKS TEAM:
Inny Radebe, Yaw Penxe, Marnus Potgieter, Murray Koster, Curwin Gertse, Tito Bonilla, Cameron Wright, Celimpilo Gumede, Thembelani Bholi, James Venter (captain), Hyron Andrews, Emile van Heerden, Wiehahn Herbst, Fez Mbatha, Dian Bleuler. Replacements: Dan Jooste, Braam Reyneke, Lourens Adriaanse, Jeandre Labuschagne, Ntsika, Fisani, Sanele Nohamba, Jordan Chait, Ethan Fisher.