The log points Western Province so desperately sought were not forthcoming as the greater experience and exposure of the Sharks condemned them to their first home defeat of the season under the stadium lights on Friday night.

WP pulled out their young guns for this game, and while they gained much in the quest to blood players who may just feature in next year's Super 14 challenge, it was always the Sharks who had the advantage on the scoreboard and who looked that bit more clinical and composed.

The hosts opted for a frenetic expansive game, and such an approach is always going to be high risk and high reward, as they learned when the Durbanites, who were just so much more accurate with their finishing, punished them by scoring four tries.

There was a time when WP threatened, heading towards the quarter hour mark of the second half as they trailed by just five points, but the French international Frederic Michalak underlined the value of experience by snapping over a drop-goal and then scoring a try to effectively end the match as a contest.

Michalak was well served by Ruan Pienaar, who should have been pleased with his return to his preferred No 9 jersey for the first time in quite a while, and who underlined his class.

From a Cape viewpoint though it was a pity the Sharks were able to draw clear so soon for WP had threatened frequently during the first hour of the match, and they showed far greater enterprise than they had in previous matches this season.

Their approach was in direct contrast to the first round match between these two sides at King's Park, when WP did hardly any playing beyond relying on their ball scavengers and the kicking boot of Willem de Waal.

But in that match WP came within a couple of minutes, and three points, of winning while here they were well out of it by the final whistle and comprehensively beaten.

With the Lions shocking the Blue Bulls in Pretoria at the same time, this leaves Province with a mountain to climb if they are to qualify for a semi-final place in this competition.

The Sharks on the other hand will head into the three week break before the next fixture quite confident that the subject of provincial rugby will still be on the agenda in the sub-tropics when spring arrives.

But as WP have so many players missing on national duty and to injury, and the Sharks were bolstered by several returning stars considered surplus to requirements by Springbok coach Peter de Villiers, perhaps this is a time we should be looking to the bigger picture.

Which of course is the role the domestic competition these days plays as a testing ground for the talent that will play in next year's Super 14.

Here WP, with a frenetic, expansive style that would have been misplaced had it been a Test match but was probably their only option on the night, learned quite a lot.

And few of the 21 000 people who were at Newlands last night will deny that in young Nic Koster, WP have unearthed a real gem.

Indeed, he may be more of a gold mine than a gem, with his skill levels, his confidence and assurance in his first big start belying the fact that this time last year he was still at school down the road at Bishops.

Koster featured several times on the attack for WP in a first half where they surprisingly won the battle for possession, and then scored his team's only try of the match for the second week in a row.

For the second week in succession WP were forced to play catch-up thanks to a mistake within the first two minutes of the game.

Last week it was the Schalk Brits clearance that was punished by the Lions, this week it was a WP tap as they tried to contest a defensive lineout, that fell into the hands of Albert van den Berg who put hooker Skipper Badenhorst in for a try at the corner.

There was a lot of huff and puff from WP for the next 20 minutes, and they left both the Sharks and their own supporters in no doubt that they had come to play.

There were a couple of great attacks and some piercing darts by WP players such as Gio Aplon, Brits, Bolla Conradie, Gcobani Bobo and Koster, as well as some telling drives from Ross Skeate when up in support, and on one occasion WP looked to have scored but a pass between Bobo and PJ Vermeulen was adjudged to be forward.

None of the attacking came to anything, however, and when Pienaar coolly slotted a penalty to make it 8-0 for the Sharks, it pretty much summed up how the evening was going to go, and Province were really under pressure once the Sharks, profiting from a turn-over inside their own half, had scored through Stefan Terblanche five minutes into the second half.



This article was originally published on page 30 of Cape Argus on August 09, 2008

The Sharks' preparations for Saturday's visit to Kimberley got off to an uncertain start because the coaching staff were unsure which of their players were to be called up by Springbok coach Peter de Villiers for next week's Test match against Argentina.

Coach John Plumtree said he had read newspaper reports that Ruan Pienaar was to be picked at flyhalf for the friendly Test in Johannesburg, but had had no official word about the composition of the Springbok squad that was eventually named on Monday night.

Pienaar played flyhalf for the Sharks against the Lions in place of injured Frederic Michalak, and this week the Sharks hoped to play Pienaar at scrumhalf with Michalak back at No 10.

The Frenchman missed the Lions match because of a bruised hip, but is expected to pass a fitness test this week.

Plumtree was also in the dark for most of Monday regarding loosehead prop Tendai "Beast" Mtawarira and wing Odwa Ndungane, both of whom were released from the Tri-Nations squad last week. However, the situation regarding Ryan Kankowski is clear cut - the No 8 is suffering from a clavicle injury, and is not available for selection this week.

Plumtree is also optimistic that tight-head prop B J Botha will be available for selection after a fortnight on the sidelines with a back injury. There is no joy, though, regarding scrumhalf Rory Kockott and centre Bradley Barritt.

Kockott's go-forward has been missed by the Sharks since he broke a bone in his ankle a month ago, and they will be without his services for their next two matches as well, against Griquas and Western Province. It is hoped that he will play again after the three-week break for the Tri-Nations.

Barritt has suffered a multitude of injuries this Currie Cup. There has been an early ruling on his groin complaint this week, and he will not play.

Plumtree said that Griquas would be tougher than ever, given that they were coming off a bye. "The bye definitely refreshes teams," the coach said.

"They will be very keen to add our scalp to that of Western Province. They also almost beat the Lions, so yes, we are very aware of the challenge that awaits us.


http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=6&click_id=18&art_id=vn20080729070559394C973794

Beastly Sharks: Tendai Rugby Union featuring: Guinness Premiership Final Wasps vs Leicester and Super 14 Final Crusaders vs Waratahs
The mood and energy levels were distinctly upbeat at the Sharks training session with four returning Springboks as well as two players coming back from injury, sparked a timely revival and revitalization in the camp.

With Frédéric Michalak still 50-50 after taking a bump to the hip, the back-line will not be finalised until later in the week, with Sharks coach John Plumtree explaining that the fly-half is still quite tender but, "hopefully by Thursday he'll be a lot better."

However, the good news was that Jean Deysel and Bradley Barritt were back in training, while Ruan Pienaar, Beast Mtawarira, Odwa Ndungane and Ryan Kankowski all look likely to get game time in the crucial Currie Cup match against the Lions on Saturday.

Following Saturday's loss to the Free State Cheetahs, the Sharks find themselves in something of a pressure situation as they look to get back to winning form.

"The Springboks plus a couple of injuries that have come right as well was good to see," Plumtree said on the Sharks website.

"Four good, class players adds to the depth and makes the job easier."

But he did issue a proviso that they should not be expected, on their own, to win the match for the Sharks.

"The important point is that we have to make sure we play well enough to help their transformation back into the team - the danger is we as a group expect them to get us going and it shouldn't be like that."

Compared to a week ago, the Sharks are certainly in a better position in terms of manpower, but despite the boost in player personnel, the coach admitted that he's saving his smiles for the result, not the build-up.

"I'll smile if we play well on the weekend," said Plumtree.

With three forwards and three backs added to the mix, this certainly creates more options for a Sharks team who this time last week had to face the prospect of playing a close-on full-strength Cheetahs side, while themselves had a severe test of squad depth.

"The pack has a bit of a different look to it," confirmed Plumtree.

"Especially the loose forwards in particular and with "Beast" back, it gives us a bit of depth in the front row, we're happy with that."


http://www.planet-rugby.co.za/Story/0,18259,3551_3855721,00.html

The Sharks training will take on a positive vibe today as the team welcome back a number of players from injury. It is not certain who will be ready to play this weekend, but certainly the inclusion of Brad Barritt, Rory Kockott, Steven Sykes and Frederic Michalak at training, albeit in a limited manner, will bolster the team's morale and possibly their firepower ahead of their clash against the Valke this Friday night in week four of The Absa Currie Cup.

Coach John Plumtree confirmed that all four are all expected at training later today “and we'll assess them after that.” Michalak is still a few weeks off a start and flank Jean Deysel will be back in a matter of weeks as well, having fractured bones in his hand in the preseason compulsory friendly against the Griffons.

Plumtree also gave an injury update following the Blue Bulls match, explaining that, “Deon Carstens took a little bit of a calf muscle injury and Nic Strauss is OK but has a little bit of a knee injury which will be assessed and he'll undergo rehab today.”

Looking back to the Blue Bulls match, the coach admitted that, “I think we got a couple of things wrong in our preparation and that cost us. We missed some important one-on-one tackles which let us down and that was disappointing because we knew that if they gained momentum through their big runners, they would stress us out wide. We have a little bit of inexperience in the backs, and as they play, they will improve, but yes, it was a bit disappointing.”

On the flip-side he pointed out that, “A positive sign is that we played some of our best rugby of the year, I thought some of the rugby we put together was better than some of the stuff we did in the Super 14, so that was encouraging for us.

“There is a lot of stuff we are working on that's actually coming through. The scoreboard doesn't reflect this, but we saw some really positive rugby. There is a lot of stuff in terms of strategy that we are trying to put in place to get better.”

Losing Bradley Barritt late in the week was a real blow and Plumtree admitted that Monty Dumond deserves praise for his effort. “It was hard for Monty, he had no preparation time whatsoever.”

He also attributed the mistakes made by the Sharks to good pressure applied by the Bulls.

“If the side is good enough to put you under pressure you're going to make errors. The game of rugby at this level is about pressure - how much good pressure you put on them to force them to err, how much they do to us. We're dealing with a Bulls side that is bloody experienced, there wasn't a single guy there that isn't a household name in Pretoria, and probably South Africa. We knew what we were up against, it was really tough.”

In mitigation, he admitted that injuries and pressure are excuses, “but they're valid ones, so I think everyone needs to show a little bit of patience with this team. We've had three games and two wins, we're looking forward to another Friday night game [at The Absa Stadium Durban] and we're all positive here.”

http://www.sarugby.com/news/News/article/sid=9448.html

The Sharks' performance against Western Province this past weekend was "rusty" at best and although this Friday they should have a far easier time of it against the Boland Kavaliers, they will be looking for a vastly improved performance.

And helping their cause over the next few weeks will be two men with the French connection.

Monty Dumond, who fulfilled the flyhalf berth for the Sharks on occasion in last year's Currie Cup, has returned from France and will be back in training this week.

French international Frederic Michalak is also back in Durban and Plumtree said he should be available for selection in two or three weeks. Both players will provide crucial cover at flyhalf and also as possible goal-kickers.

This past weekend Brad Barritt performed admirably at fly-half, playing through the pain after sustaining a back injury prior to kick-off.

"Brad hasn't played there for a fair while and he had a really difficult week leading up to the match," Plumtree explained. "He had flu and hurt his back during the warm-up. Under the circumstances I think he did really well."

However, the real stand-out performer was scrumhalf Rory Kockott who kicked the Sharks to victory under extreme pressure.

Plumtree said the character shown by both Barritt and Kockott epitomised that of the whole team. After a dazzling Super 14 season, many thought Kockott would be a shoo-in to the Bok squad, but he wasn't even named in the extended training group, though Plumtree said there was still "plenty of time" for him to get back in the reckoning.

Consistent

"Rory has had a very good year. He's played extremely well and his confidence is high. You always know what you are going to get from him because he's very consistent and mentally tough. I'm sure he will just keep getting better and there is still plenty of time for him to make the Boks."

Plumtree said it was early days in the competition and that he wasn't overly concerned with the indifferent performance from his charges.

"I was proud of the way the boys hung in but there is still a lot to work on ... there are a few things at the lineout we need to look at and there is also a fair bit to do with our phase play in terms of our direction. But I was pretty happy with our scrum and I thought our defence was good.

"For us this is just the starting point and we need to keep building. I was actually quite impressed with some of the rugby we played in the second half because we managed to get some rhythm going on attack. So I wouldn't have even been that stressed if we'd lost," he added.

The Sharks face the Boland Kavaliers this Friday, and although they are regarded as one of the weaker teams in the competition, Plumtree said he wouldn't be making many changes.

"I won't change the team too much. I'm not into that, I may give someone an opportunity but I don't believe in wholesale changes. A couple of players deserve a crack and they'll get it, there's still plenty of rugby to be played."

Plumtree also gave some insight into the Sharks' approach they would be taking this season.

"We have talked about the importance of the jersey and if we are going to get beaten then that's fine, as long as it's by a better team. The jersey demands that respect and we now have a launching pad to get better."


This article was originally published on page 24 of Daily News on June 23, 2008