The Sharks Thread

[Draggs]

Why drop Mvovo? He is a better wing than Odwa and played a great match last weekend?
Deysel off the bench around 50-60 minutes and send Schalk running away.

 

[JJR]

Mvovo is not a complete wing yet...he doesn't always stay on his man, not great under high ball and can't kick. His workrate is also poor compared to Ndungane. In the tough games, against teams with solid defence you need guys who look for work and don't just chill on the wing...if that happens he will never score. Against the Canes he was basically given both tries. First one was catch and run round prop, second was also passed into his hands. He was not attempting the intercept, he got Lucky. He shot out of the line and had the pass been a bit better Mvovo would have given them an easy run in try.
Well this is how i see it.

 

[Seaton]

Yeah, what JJR said.

We also need somone with a lot of experience when dealing with players like Aplon and Jantjes. Both in terms of marking their runs and collecting/ returning their kicks.

 

[Draggs]

Fair enough. I do think Mvovo will overtake Odwa as our other starting wing, but he has a way to go.
Quite a few on here seem to like the idea of Odwa at 15, has he played their before?

 

[TRF_Ezequiel]

During the Super15 warm up period he played there and seeing that most fullbacks derive from wingers, it does not seem that stupid since Odwa is almost 30 and his speed is not what is has been

 

[Draggs]

During the Super15 warm up period he played there and seeing that most fullbacks derive from wingers, it does not seem that stupid since Odwa is almost 30 and his speed is not what is has been

I have never really considered Odwa to bee the quickest winger, but you certainly need some at fullback.
Ludik has a fair bit of pace and runs good angles. His try v Lions was fantastic, hope to see a few more from him.

 

[JJR]

Sharks XV team vs Western Province. Vodacom Cup Quarter Final.

15.Gouws Prinsloo
14.Mark Richards
13.Jerome Pretorius
12.Riaan Swanepoel
11.Sbura Sithole
10.JLP
9.Cobus Reinach
8.Marcell Coetzee
7.Lambert Groenewald
6.Francois Kleinhans
5.Gerhard Mostert
4.Anton Bresler
3.Wiehahn Herbst
2.Craig Burden
1.Dale Chadwick

16.Kyle Cooper
17.Sabelo Nhlapo
18.Jandre Marais
19.Daniel Adongo
20.Ross Cronje
21.Heimar Williams
22.Rosko Specman

Kobus De kock has fallen out of favour for 15 so fast...feel sorry for him. Serious quality in this team...i expect a victory in this one.

 

[JJR]

THE RETURN OF DEYSEL!!!

Stormers V The Sharks

Wicus Blaauw 1. Tendai Mtawarira
Deon Fourie 2. John Smit (Captain)
CJ Van Der Linde 3. Jannie du Plessis
Rynhardt Elstadt 4. Steven Sykes
Andries Bekker 5. Ross Skeate
Schalk Burger 6. Keegan Daniel
Francois Louw 7. Willem Alberts
Duane Vermeulen 8. Ryan Kankowski
Dewaldt Devenage 9. Charl McLeod
Lionel Cronje 10. Patrick Lambie
Bryan Habana 11. JP Pietersen
Jean De Villiers 12. Meyer Bosman
Jaque Fourie 13. Stefan Terblanche
Gio Aplon 14. Odwa Ndungane
Conrad Jantjes 15. Louis Ludik
Replacements
Ethienne Reynecke 16. Bismarck du Plessis
Brok Harris 17. Eugene van Staden
De Kock Steenkamp 18. Alistair Hargreaves
Nick Koster 19. Jean Deysel
Ricky Januarie 20. Conrad Hoffmann
Kurt Coleman 21. Adrian Jacobs
Juan De Jongh 22. Lwazi Mvovo

 

[Seaton]

I always thought Mostert was more of a 4, and Bresler a 5
In the end I suppose it doesn't matter, as in the end the Sharks XV will annihilate WP B)

Glad they decided to show this after all on Supersport

 

[JJR]

I always thought Mostert was more of a 4, and Bresler a 5
In the end I suppose it doesn't matter, as in the end the Sharks XV will annihilate WP B)

Glad they decided to show this after all on Supersport

Our lineup is very strong...Our Pack, halfback pairing and Wingers...very good. Our Centres for XV are still the weakness for me; but everywhere else we are great. U right, we gonna smash WP!!!

As for The Sharks we playing against Cronje at fly; and that is enough for me to be confident that we will beat the Stormers. Our bench with Deysel, Bissie and Jacobs coming on...deadly 22 we have this week!!!

 

[Seaton]

The Sharks XV is through to the Vodacom Cup semis after winning 21-19 against WP
The ref didn't have a clue in that game

 

[TRF_Ezequiel]

First 15 are over and it's mainly the Stormers with the posession and Jean de Villiers scores the first try after a penalty each

 

[JJR]

Eligibility Rules to Screw with The Sharks XV?

Sharks XV coach Sean Everitt appears to have been dealt a hammer blow as his side prepares for their Vodacom Cup semi-final against the Pampas XV in Potchefstroom this coming weekend. A new and hastily-communicated eligibility rule from SA Rugby looks set to rule out nearly half of his starting pack of forwards…
Let's take a wee step back here, though and have a look at the problem that SA Rugby is trying to solve. The Vodacom Cup, ever since its inception back in 1997 (or so), was meant to be a competition to showcase emerging talent. Given that any union also fielding a Super Rugby team would be unlikely to give the Vodacom Cup much importance, though, it has often become the proverbial "dumping ground" for players deemed short on form or match practice and over the years many players on the fringes of Super Rugby squads have ended up yo-yo-ing in and out of the Vodacom Cup throughout the season. SA Rugby wants to prevent the situation of a union "loading" its Vodacom Cup team with Super Rugby players in a crucial knock-out match, since this would be completely contrary to the goals of the competition, hence the introduction of eligibility criteria. Makes sense, from a big picture point of view… but how do you do it?
Well, this time around, it seems, you do it at the eleventh hour and the latest communique from the governing body only tends to reinforce my feeling that the Vodacom Cup in 2011 is very much an afterthought in the corridors of power. One could be forgiven for thinking that they're making it up as they go along this year, with decisions regarding the competition format being decided on week by week.
Here's the wording of the latest ruling, aimed at preventing too many Super Rugby players appearing in the play-offs: "Players who appeared in Vodacom Super Rugby matches may participate in the quarter final matches of the Vodacom Cup. However, players who appeared in a Vodacom Super Rugby match 22 on four (4) or more occasions are deemed ineligible for Vodacom Cup semi-final and final matches."
This is an important change to the way it usually works. In the past, there have been requirements along the lines of "a player must have played at least XXX games (or minutes) during the league phases to be eligible to play in the knock-outs", which while still open to abuse, was probably a lot more sensible (and fair). Apart from ruling out a player like Jacques-Louis Potgieter from this weekend's match (which we knew about all along and were prepared for) the above, which I must emphasise was only communicated to the media two days ago, means that none of Craig Burden, Anton Bresler or Gerhard Mostert is available to the Sharks XV this weekend either, despite all three having played a significant role in the league stages of the campaign.
My only hope here is that this ruling was communicated to the Union's coaching staff at a point in the season where they could have factored it into their planning, rather than so late in the game that it's bound to catch them unawares. Spare a thought, too, for the players who have worked so hard to help their team get to the knock-outs, only to informed that they're not allowed to play in them…

Source- Sharksworld.co.za
Author- Rob Otto/RobDylan.

Skeate can play; so what would be a smart move would be to Let Skeate join Sharks XV and let either Mostert or Bresler cover off the bench for Hargreaves and Sykes. Brumbies should be an open running game so it would not really suit Skeate too much anyway, won't be lots of lineouts.

Possible Sharks XV Team for Semi against unbeaten Pampas XV in Potchefstroom.

1.Dale Chadwick
2.Kyle Cooper
3.Wiehahn Herbst
4.J. Marias
5.Ross Skeate
6.Francois Kleinhans
7.Lambert Groenewald
8.Marcell Coetzee
9.Ross Cronje
10. Guy Cronje/Fred Zeilinga
11.Sbura Sithole
12.Riaan Swanepoel
13.Jerome Pretorius
14.Mark Richards
15.Gouws Prinsloo

16.Monde Hadebe
17.Sabelo Nhlapo
18.Peet Marais
19.Daniel Adongo
20.Cobus Reinach
21.? i would go for Dwayne Jenner if he is fit.
22.Rosko Specman

If Skeate does not come down i will hope that Kene Okafor comes onto the bench with the Marais brothers in the starting 15. Go XV!!!!
They showed awesome commitment and hunger to win at Newlands on Saturday...they had an attitude that The Sharks can learn from. Youngsters are setting the example.

Unfortunately The Lions have once again poached one of our youngsters; Kene Okafor will not be involved for XV this weekend as he has Joined Lions already.

Sbura Sithole is also back with the SA Sevens; pity i wanted to see some more of him for Sharks XV. Hopefully he gets a run in the Currie Cup, i think he has a Shite loud of potential and talent.

 

[JJR]

J. Smit out for 2 weeks with a Calf strain. Bismarck will obviously take his place in the No.2 Jersey. There is talk that Deysel will swop with Alberts in order to give Alberts a rest and to get Deysel back into things before we encounter Tahs and Bulls after the Bye. Terblanche will most Likely Captain the side; which will mean the centre combo will be the same as last weeks.

Sharks are hurting as many players have revealed on twitter and there is a lot of motivation to smash the Brumbies physically this weekend. They will have a Bye after this game, which is even more motivation for them to leave absolutely everything on the field.

BTW, anyone with the authority...hint hint wink wink "Jericho", may change the Poll, been there for a while, maybe time for a new one...like Best Centre Pairing or Lock Pairing.

 

[JJR]

The Sharks Team V Brumbies on Saturday.

Great mix of youth and experience. Smit and Kanko out injured. Skeate has gone over to the Sharks XV, due to the rules that Stop Bresler and Mostert for playing for them(Read above posts). That allows Bresler to come off the Bench and SA u/20 8th man Marcell coetzee to move into the 19 shirt. He has been one of the Best ball carrying looseforwards so far in the Vodacom Cup and has set up a number of tries with his pace from the back of the scrum. The loose trio is also one that looks very scary!!!

1.Beast
2.Bissie
3.Jannie Du Plessis
4.Sykes
5.Hargreaves
6.Daniel
7.Deysel
8.Alberts
9.Mcloed
10.Lambie
11.JPP
12.Bosman
13.Stef (C)
14.Ndungane
15.Ludik

16.Burden
17.Van Staden
18.Anton Bresler
19.Marcell Coetzee
20.Conrad Hoffmann
21.Adi Jacobs
22.Lwazi Mvovo

Sharks XV team V Pampas XV tomorrow afternoon in the Vodacom Cup Semi-final.

1.Dale Chadwick
2.Kyle Cooper
3.Wiehahn Herbst
4.Jandre Marais
5.Ross Skeate
6.Daniel Adongo
7.Lambert Groenewald
8.Francois Kleinhans
9.Ross Cronje
10.Guy Cronje
11.Rosko Specman
12.Riaan Swanepoel (C)
13.Jerome Pretorius
14.Mark Richards
15.Gouws Prinsloo

16.Monde Hadebe
17.Robbie Harris
18.Peet Marais
19.Lubabalo Mthembu
20.Cobus Reinach
21.Heimar Williams
22.Kobus De Kock

They have lost some quality since last week; Most notibly our lock pairing Anton Bresler/Gerhard Mostert, Marcell Coetzee, JLP and Sbura Sithole. Still a very strong pack and good finishers on the wings. Go you XV!!!!

 

[TRF_stormer2010]

Its amazing how much better the line-up looks with Smit and Kanko out and Bissie and Deysel in. At least to my eyes.

I can't see the Brumbies take this away from the Sharks at home and hurting. Sharks by 8.

 

[Draggs]

Really? I think Kanko is a much better backrower than Alberts. Same with Deysel/Alberts.
For me, Alberts still looks best coming off the bench at 50/60 minutes.
I'd like to think we can take this one, but Charl is getting progressively worse.

 

[TRF_Ezequiel]

Its amazing how much better the line-up looks with Smit and Kanko out and Bissie and Deysel in. At least to my eyes.

I can't see the Brumbies take this away from the Sharks at home and hurting. Sharks by 8.

I just don't understand Alberts is still in the starting line-up. He has made more knock-ons than McLeod even, and playing with Deysel and Alberts, is suicide since the backrow is too static

 

[Draggs]

I just don't understand Alberts is still in the starting line-up. He has made more knock-ons than McLeod even, and playing with Deysel and Alberts, is suicide since the backrow is too static

Well, Kanko is injured so it was forced.
How has Lambert been playing lately?

 

[TRF_Ezequiel]

Lambert?

I know it's forced due to Kanko's injury, but still. I would pick a more versatile flanker and move Daniel to 8 to give Alberts a rest