Ken Borland

JJ van der Mescht’s move to blindside flank was the chief talking point of the Sharks team announcement on Wednesday for their match against the Pumas in Durban on Friday night, with the Sharks also going into battle with a retreaded hooker at openside flank in Dylan Richardson.

What coach Sean Everitt described as an “experiment” has largely been forced on the Sharks though due to the effects of the Covid-19 outbreak in the squad, with both Phendulani Buthelezi and Henco Venter unavailable. Some good news though is that Springbok Sikhumbuzo Notshe is now out of quarantine and will return to action from the bench, with hardman Thembelani Bholi the starting eighthman.

“We’ve had a few problems the last couple of weeks and we’ve had to tweak our pack, giving us an opportunity to look at JJ on the side of the scrum. He has a good skill set and enough pace to fulfil the blindside role. It’s an experiment and we still look at JJ as a lock, but he’s certainly an option at seven. Next year playing in the Pro16, games are going to be a lot tighter and we’ll need to rely more on our set-piece and mauls, so if it works well on Friday night then great.

“Dylan has done well for us, his general all-round play has been outstanding. We still see him long-term as a hooker, but he is comfortable on the side of the scrum as well and he gets the chance to gain more experience there now at senior level. We’re fortunate to have three very good hookers and Dan Jooste has only made two starts but he rotates now with Kerron van Vuuren,” Everitt said on Wednesday.

While some critics have sought to disparage the Sharks’ efforts at the scrums and breakdowns – two areas of strength for the Pumas – the return of Thomas du Toit at tighthead should make a big difference to the set-piece and Everitt said the Sharks are always going to turn over some ball because of the expansive way in which they play.

“It’s really good to have Thomas back, we have struggled in the set-pieces when he’s not there, so it’s good to have a Springbok back. We’re looking to improve our set-piece and the breakdown, our focus is on that. But if you look at where we give away penalties or turn over the ball, it’s all over the field. And that’s the way it’s going to be if you play ball-in-hand rugby. When we do lose possession, it’s all about how quickly we react to the player who has turned it over,” Everitt said.

Sharks team: Manie Libbok, Yaw Penxe, Jeremy Ward (c), Marius Louw, Madosh Tambwe, Curwin Bosch, Sanele Nohamba, Thembelani Bholi, JJ van der Mescht, Dylan Richardson, Hyron Andrews, Ruben van Heerden, Thomas du Toit, Kerron van Vuuren, Ox Nche. REPLACEMENTS – Daniel Jooste, Khwezi Mona, Hanro Jacobs, Zain Davids, Sikhumbuzo Notshe, Cameron Wright, Werner Kok, Sbu Nkosi.

Super Rugby Unlocked champions the Bulls will know from the moment they land at Cape Town International Airport that they are the target of a take down by Western Province in their Currie Cup derby at Newlands on Saturday, but inside centre Cornal Hendricks says it’s important that they don’t get too caught up in all the emotion.

While Western Province are never happy to see the Bulls win a competition they played in as well, there is added emotion in Saturday’s match because, depending on how the playoffs pan out, it could be the last time the great North versus South derby that has defined so much of South African rugby is played at the grandest old stadium of them all.

“We’re expecting a lot of emotion from them because we know what Newlands means to them. They are going to be physical and they are a good team on top of that. But sometimes you can be too emotional and you forget what you want to achieve. We need to control it, I know it’s hard sometimes to control your emotions, but we need to put them aside and see the clearer picture. We need to go into the game clear-headed, cool, calm and collected,” Hendricks said.

The former Springbok wing has been a surprise package at inside centre for the Bulls, proving an industrious supplier for his fellow backs and a sturdy rock in defence. Hendricks paid tribute to coach Jake White, who is obviously a top-class talent-spotter as well as a brilliant coach, for initiating the move.

“Jake White is obviously a world-class coach and backline coach Chris Rossouw deserves credit too for backing me at 12. I still have a lot to learn playing at inside centre and I’m trying to improve in small areas every week. But I’m pleased with where Stedman Gans and myself are at as a combination. I do the dirty work and he scores the tries!,” Hendricks laughed.

“I have a good relationship with Stedman, he was a world-class Sevens player and now he’s made his mark in XVs, which is great because you don’t want to be branded as just one type of player. We have good chemistry – a bromance – and we are learning together every day, but things are going well. Guys like Kurt-Lee Arendse, David Kriel and Travis Ismaiel are also playing very good rugby,” Hendricks said.

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.

Springbok great Victor Matfield knows better than most that Jake White is a coach who demands a lot from his players, but South Africa’s most-capped player says the fruits of his approach can be seen in the Bulls’ triumph in lifting the Super Rugby Unlocked trophy at the weekend.

Matfield ended with a record 127 Test caps to his name, but it was during White’s tenure as coach from 2004 to 2007 that the Polokwane-born player became a kingpin for the Springboks and the best lineout forward in the world, culminating in him being the player of the final in the 2007 World Cup win.

“Jake White has never been happy with average and you can see that he is demanding a lot from the Bulls players, but it’s getting the best from them, the standards are lifting at Loftus. A lot of us former players thought that the Bulls needed change and then Jake came in and brought quite a bit of change. It’s a pity that there was no real Super Rugby this year because that’s the real test, but they did very well,” Matfield told The Citizen.

While brute physical strength once again seems hip in South African rugby and the Bulls’ pack was certainly the most physical in the competition, Matfield said the team’s success went well beyond simple forward-based rugby. When the ball did get to the backs, it pinged around in impressively incisive fashion.

“When the Bulls were physically up for it, like in the games against the Sharks and Stormers, then they were just ruthless. They had a very strong tight five and their loose forwards were great at the breakdown – in fact nobody in South Africa could compete with them at the breakdown. And then they had a No.9 [Ivan van Zyl] and No.10 [Morne Steyn] who controlled the game very well.

“I must admit before the season I was worried about their centre combination and I was very surprised by Cornal Hendricks at inside centre, he was outstanding, especially against the Stormers. David Kriel also did really well at fullback and the wings played well too,” Matfield said.