Ken Borland

Sharks coach Sean Everitt on Thursday brought five new starters into the conversation – and two more on the bench – for their SuperRugby Unlocked match against the Pumas in Nelspruit.

Three of the changes were forced by injury, with openside flank James Venter (ankle), tighthead prop Thomas du Toit (calf) and eighthman Sikhumbuzo Notshe (slight hamstring strain) all not available this weekend.

The new faces

Dan Jooste – Everitt has been talking all season about hooker Dylan Richardson adapting to his new position in the front row, but now the 21-year-old former junior international gets the chance to show how interchangeable he is with openside flank as he replaces James Venter in the No.6 jersey.

Jooste is a Paarl Boys’ High product and former Stormers representative who is of similar physical dimensions to Richardson and, according to Everitt, “needs game time after coming off the bench on SuperFan day and against the Lions following a considerable length of time out with a shoulder injury”.

John-Hubert Meyer – The absence of World Cup winner Du Toit will leave the Sharks a bit bereft of leadership and grunt up front, but the Sharks have managed to locate an experienced replacement in Meyer, also born and educated in the Western Cape. The 27-year-old is a seasoned scrummager and knows his way around the gainline.

JJ van der Mescht – The Sharks second row has not been particularly good at either dominating the lineouts or making their presence felt in the collisions, and Everitt has made a change to try and generate more momentum from the tight five. Van der Mescht replaces Ruben van Heerden in the starting line-up, and while both Pretoria products are two metres tall, the 21-year-old Van der Mescht weighs 130kg (14kg more) and is a big force with ball in hand.

Henco Venter – Everitt has been at pains to point out how well his loose trio have actually been playing, but in private he must be concerned over how they have been bullied twice by the Bulls. Former Free Stater Henco Venter, at 1.93 metres and 107kg, will add a harder edge in the loose.

Madosh Tambwe – The exciting speed merchant has been nursing a hamstring strain since the start of the season, but Tambwe is now ready to go and Everitt is eager to give him game time despite the energy brought to the back three by Werner Kok.

Michael Kumbirai – According to Everitt, tighthead prop Kumbirai has worked really hard since his arrival from Western Province and there is excitement at Kings Park over getting him in the mix. “Michael is so keen to get on the field and add value, he’s got the ability to shine and hopefully he takes this opportunity. He’s a physical specimen, well-built and athletic,” Everitt said.

Thembelani Bholi – Bholi has recently moved to Durban from the Bulls, having first made his name with the Southern Kings. A loose forward with a hard edge, Bholi is well-versed at making a physical statement at the gain-line, having spent much of his career at Loftus Versfeld. He is also growing his skills and is able to turn out at eighthman as well.

Sharks team: Manie Libbok, Sbu Nkosi, Lukhanyo Am (c), Marius Louw, Madosh Tambwe, Curwin Bosch, Sanele Nohamba, Phendulani Buthelezi, Henco Venter, Dylan Richardson, Hyron Andrews, JJ van der Mescht, John-Hubert Meyer, Dan Jooste, Ox Nche. Replacements – Kerron van Vuuren, Mzamo Majola, Michael Kumbirai, Ruben van Heerden, Thembelani Bholi, Grant Williams, Jeremy Ward, Yaw Penxe.

Bulls scrumhalf Ivan van Zyl has warned that their brilliant victory over the Sharks is worth nothing unless they build on it and maintain that momentum in their huge games coming up against the Stormers in Pretoria on Saturday and versus the Lions at Ellis Park the following weekend.

Top spot on the log is their’s at the moment, but the Bulls will need to keep winning to hold off the thus far unbeaten Free State Cheetahs and Stormers, who have won both their matches, because Jake White’s team then have a bye.

“As a team we took a lot of confidence from the Sharks game and that performance couldn’t have come at a better time. Before that we had been a bit stop-start, we didn’t have much flow in our first two games. Every game is important but now it’s really important that we build on that display and move forward, otherwise that win won’t help us.

“We have a couple of massive games coming up, but at least we were more clinical at the right times, there was better decision-making and we identified space better. Better decisions lead to better play, and this time we rounded off our chances. Coach Jake is very good at making sure that it is all about getting the team to win and we all understand our roles every week,” Van Zyl said.

While the Bulls were much more accurate with ball in hand, and also off the boot, their defence was also highly impressive against the Sharks as they conceded just one try.

“We’re very happy with our defence and the combination of scoring six tries and just conceding one is massive for us. The more consistent we are in our defence, the more opportunities we’ll have to win, so it’s something we continue to work on and against the Stormers we’ll come up against different players with different skill-sets. But we take a lot of confidence from the defensive effort against the Sharks.

“Joey Mongalo has been great for us as defence coach, he has great energy and clearly loves what he does, he’s passionate about defence and that rubs off on the team. We are eager to get better every week. The basics of our defensive system haven’t changed that much, but there’s a new energy,” Van Zyl said.

The Sharks have identified the Bulls’ ability to tie them down in the tight exchanges as the key factor in their heavy defeat at Loftus Versfeld last weekend, and they are confident those problems will be fixed in time for their meeting with a similarly physical pack when they play the Pumas in Nelspruit on Saturday.

“We’ve identified where we fell short and it’s all very fixable, the errors we made were very much controllables, even though the Bulls were very good. We started well, especially up front – we stopped their mauls, we hit them hard off the line, ball-and-all, and we scrummed well. But then we just lost our way and our momentum slipped. The same thing happened against the Lions.

“So we know we have to keep the same intensity for the full 80 minutes, it’s something we’re working very hard on and it will definitely change this weekend. We can look at the bye or Lockdown for stopping our momentum, but those sort of excuses don’t help us. We have to improve every week and build back to where we were in Super Rugby,” lock Ruben van Heerden said on Tuesday.

Captain Lukhanyo Am was on the same wave-length.

“It was very frustrating because they put us under a lot of pressure at the breakdowns and set-pieces, and then we struggled for momentum and continuity. They capitalised on our mistakes, they took a lot of energy from the set-pieces and it’s something we have to work very hard to shore up. It’s unfortunate that we’ve lost Thomas du Toit, who is very experienced and one of our leaders up front,” Am said.

While the Sharks were on the wrong side of a 41-14 hammering last weekend, the Pumas really took on the Stormers and were most unfortunate to lose 42-37 after they had the favourites very much on the back foot at 14-37 down.

“The Pumas should have beaten the Stormers, tactically they were outstanding and they identified many flaws in the opposition, but in the end they were unfortunate to let it slip in the last 15 minutes. History has proven that you can’t take these smaller unions lightly, they always show up and the Pumas and Griquas have beaten us on occasion. They clearly have good coaches and a good plan,” Van Heerden said.

Am was impressed by the Pumas’ balance between attack and defence but he said the Sharks will be desperate to bounce back and they are putting in the work to do so.

“Historically our matches against the Pumas have always been close, tough games and they look a pretty balanced side. They are solid on D[efence] and they have a lot of energy with ball-in-hand, they’ll be very confident and they like running the ball. But we’ve analysed the opportunities and threats they pose, and, coming from a bad loss, we will be geared up, ready and prepared.

“We have been losing momentum early in the season but we have consecutive games now and I think the continuity will be much better as we feed off each other’s energy. Our errors are maybe influenced by rustiness, but it’s the same personnel as in Super Rugby and we should click anytime soon,” Am said.

Technology has allowed players to be tracked in detail now throughout the 80 minutes of a rugby match and every individual contribution is measured and analysed. One man who would have featured in almost all categories for the Bulls in their weekend demolition of the Sharks was rookie loose forward Elrigh Louw.

Given that they won 41-14, the Bulls were understandably dominant in terms of the game statistics – they enjoyed 52% possession and 53% territory, they ran for 367 metres compared to 223, beat 20 defenders compared to just 13 by the Sharks, and made 14 clean breaks while the opposition could only make two. The Bulls also won twice as many turnovers, and completed 86 of their 99 tackles, with 73 of those being dominant hits. The Sharks made 79 tackles, 59 of them being dominant, and missed 20.

And the 21-year-old Louw contributed plenty of carries, made valuable metres, tackled ferociously and even had time to win turnovers and make a couple of offloads. He was also a lineout option in a dominant set-piece for the Bulls.

Snapped up from the Southern Kings last month after they went bust, Louw seems in many ways an old-fashioned forward who keeps things simple and he is learning plenty from playing alongside Springbok great Duane Vermeulen.

“When I was at high school at Transvalia in Vanderbijlpark, Duane was the player I looked up to, I used to follow his every step and I wanted to be like him as a player, so to be here at the Bulls with him is a dream come true. I just try and be a sponge and take in everything, and it’s a real privilege to be playing with Springboks like Duane and Marco van Staden.

“I think we connected well as a loose trio, we were stealing balls, being a nuisance on the ground and we were physical in defence, so I think we complemented each other well. I just keep my head down and keep on grinding, I try and focus on my game and not other stuff. It has been a big move from Port Elizabeth but I’m sure it’s the right thing for my career,” Louw said on Monday.

The Pretoria-born Louw has made just the sole start in Super Rugby Unlocked but impressed to such an extent that people are already saying he could be a youngster who enjoys a long and successful career at Loftus Versfeld. He has settled in extremely well and made a good impression on both his team-mates and coach Jake White speaks highly of his talent and direct style.

“I’ve fitted in comfortably, it feels like I’ve been here for years because all of the coaches and players work so well together. In the space of two days me and all my stuff went from Port Elizabeth to Pretoria but one of the big reasons for the move was to be closer to home. I’m enjoying playing for the Bulls unbelievably much.

“I’ve accepted the challenge that no matter who we are playing against, we have to win and that means winning the small battles in the game, even though I don’t focus on my opponents,” Louw said.