The Cell C Sharks have run into impressive form recently and have gathered winning momentum so it shouldn’t come as any surprise that the Durbanites have kept the same match 23 for Saturday’s crucial Vodacom United Rugby Championship clash with Connacht.
Coach Sean Everitt has always spoken about the need to give the combinations time together in order to gain confidence and a good understanding of each other, and after some hiccups along the way, that selection approach is starting to pay off. And it will need to continue to do so as the Sharks’ URC campaign has now reached a critical stage
The Irish province heads to Hollywoodbets Kings Park unbeaten against South African opposition in the competition and looking to make it a full house for the season. The Sharks by contrast need to win to ensure Champions Cup qualification as they head to Belfast after this to play their final match against Ulster.
Everitt will believe his team can win anywhere but he will nonetheless not want to be in a situation where his side have to travel north to one of the more difficult away venues in the URC needing to win to satisfy what at the start of the season would have been the baseline requirement of qualifying for the play-offs and next year's Champions Cup.
The Sharks had to dig deep last week to beat a Leinster team that wasn’t at full strength but any win over Leinster is something to be proud of and in some senses the performance confirmed the impression that the Sharks are now starting to put it together. Certainly, while no-one would suggest the synchronisation of the team is perfect, some of the areas that weren’t functioning before, such as the halfbacks, have started to come right.
The Sharks have evolved into a very forward, set-piece oriented team in comparison with where they were at the start of Everitt’s stint as coach during the aborted final season of Super Rugby in 2020, but then the weather conditions in Durban have suited that switch. At the best of times you expect humidity in Durban from January through to March, and we know how debilitating that is to the quest to play crowd pleasing rugby, but this year there has also been plenty of rain.
The good news though is that for once there isn’t any rain predicted for match day, and the relatively cool conditions for Durban - 23 degrees - should further help the Sharks in their quest for the five log points they should be chasing in order to maintain a challenge for both a top four spot on the overall log and the South African Shield.
They go into the game one point behind the Stormers, who both head the Shield and are second overall, so depending what happens with the Stormers against Leinster later on Saturday, a bonus point win is probably imperative given how formidable Ulster will be as opponents in that last game.
It is looking quite possible that the Sharks and Ulster might also meet in the play-offs, with the team that has home ground advantage for a potential quarterfinal being determined by what happens in these remaining games, so the pressure is certainly on and Sharks captain Thomas du Toit knows what is at stake.
“I don’t think we should underestimate the value of having home ground advantage for a quarterfinal,” said Du Toit this week.
“Our quest is not just to make the play-offs and be a participant, we are aiming to finish high enough to have home ground advantage in the play-offs.”
With a team that is now coming together because of the continuity mantra Everitt has adopted in selection, the Sharks have the momentum to complete their home run with the win that will put them in with a chance of achieving their top four objective going into the final game.
Cell C Sharks team:Aphelele Fassi, Werner Kok, Ben Tapuai, Marius Louw, Makazole Mapimpi, Curwin Bosch, Jaden Hendrikse, Phepsi Buthelezi, Henco Venter, Siya Kolisi, Gerbrandt Grobler, Le Roux Roets, Thomas du Toit, Bongi Mbonambi, Ox Nche. Replacements:Kerron van Vuuren, Nthuthuko Mchunu, Khutha Mchunu, Reniel Hugo, Jeandre Labuschagne, Sikhumbuzo Notshe, Grant Williams, Boeta Chamberlain.