Bosch provides consistency at 10, but Nohamba & Louw also providing great support alongside him
Curwin Bosch has been an ever-present at flyhalf in the Sharks team this year and has also performed with impressive consistency, but the Springbok said on Tuesday that he has been helped by the solid form of scrumhalf Sanele Nohamba alongside him, and also Marius Louw outside him in the No.12 jersey.
Nohamba, aged just 21, has now cemented himself as the Sharks number one scrumhalf, while Louw has had the tough task of replacing Springbok juggernaut Andre Esterhuizen and has made the inside centre berth his own.
“Sanele and I have a very good understanding. He’s grown a lot as a player and has taken on a lot of responsibility for a relatively young guy. He has stepped up really well,” Bosch said. “Marius Louw is also going very well at No.12. He’s been in the Sharks system for a while and is a terrific rugby player. He had big boots to fill with Andre leaving, but he has done very well.
“The backline as a whole is doing its job. Our game-plan is simple but very effective, and even though we haven’t hit our straps yet, we know if we perform well then the results will come our way. It’s important that we stick to our structures and if we do that, then I’m sure we can beat any team. Personally, I’m in a very good space and I’m doing my basics well,” the 23-year-old Bosch said.
The Sharks host the Pumas in the opening round of the Currie Cup at Kings Park on Friday night and Bosch says they will need to attack their opposition from the start to ensure they exert dominance over them.
“The Pumas have shown, especially in that second half last weekend against the Bulls, that it’s really important to start well against them and assert yourself otherwise you’re to going to make it a very long day for yourselves. You have to make sure you hit them hard in the first 40 minutes and then at a later stage you’ve made it comfortable for yourselves,” Bosch said.
As the flyhalf, Bosch will be the key to directing that attack and he is full of confidence at the moment.
“I’m really enjoying the extended run at No.10, I like the pressure and responsibility that comes with it. It’s great to know I have the confidence of the coaches and I have found a process now and stuck to it. In terms of goalkicking, I’m practising less but being more focused on quality. It feels a bit unfair for me to win the man of the match awards for just doing my job. The forwards work really hard to win those penalties and I just kick them over,” Bosch added.