Ken Borland

The Sharks will travel to Pretoria for their United Rugby Championship derby against the Bulls with two significant advances for their defensive cause having occurred this week.

The first is in selection, with coach Sean Everitt announcing on Thursday that captain Lukhanyo Am would move back to outside centre against the Bulls, with Marius Louw coming in to wear the No.12 jersey.

It is a widely-speculated move, especially since Am has been so influential in the No.13 jersey for the Springboks and is considered one of the best in the world in that position.

The other boost to the Sharks’ defence, which was exposed by the Stormers last weekend in Cape Town, has been the presence of Springbok Sevens coach Neil Powell at training this week.

“Jeremy Ward loses out so we can give Marius Louw a go,” Everitt said. “Marius was really good last week and the game before in the Currie Cup, he was one of the standout backs against both Griquas and Western Province.

“Marius has played well every time he has put on our jersey. We tried Lukhanyo at 12, but Marius has put his hand up and deserves to be selected.

“With the setback of Ben Tapuai’s injury, we kept Lukhanyo at 12 for a couple of weeks from a playmaking perspective, but now he can move back to where he is really comfortable in defence,” Everitt said.

Powell will only become the Sharks’ official defence coach after the Sevens World Cup in September and was in Durban to familiarise himself with his new home, rather than do any on-field work. But it would be a surprise if he did not loan some of his expertise to the Sharks on an informal basis.

“It’s public knowledge that Neil will join us post the Sevens World Cup,” Everitt said, “and defence is his strength, that’s why we have appointed him.

“He was on a break and he came up to Durban to get to know the people and learn our system, to which he will bring some different ideas. He was only here for three days.

“But he’s a really good person with strong values, which has been shown in the Springboks Sevens and their admirable culture, which is something we are strong on too.”

In the other changes to the Sharks team, flank Henco Venter comes in for the injured Jeandre Labuschagne and Gerbrandt Grobler replaces Ruben van Heerden at lock.

The changes represent some freshening up of the pack after three physically taxing games, with Grobler adding some presence to the tight five and Venter aiming to keep the Bulls quiet at the breakdown.

Sharks: Aphelele Fassi, Sbu Nkosi, Lukhanyo Am (c), Marius Louw, Makazole Mapimpi, Tito Bonilla, Jaden Hendrikse, Phepsi Buthelezi, Henco Venter, Siya Kolisi, Hyron Andrews, Gerbrandt Grobler, Thomas du Toit (v/c), Bongi Mbonambi, Ox Nche. Replacements – Kerron van Vuuren, Ntuthuko Mchunu, Khutha Mchunu, Ruben van Heerden, Sikhumbuzo Notshe, Grant Williams, Curwin Bosch, Werner Kok.

As head coach and one of the chief setters of goals for the Bulls, Jake White said he was content with their two successive United Rugby Championship wins over the Lions, although he felt they missed a golden opportunity for another bonus point in their 21-13 win at Loftus Versfeld at the weekend.

After a torrid first quarter, the Bulls look set to repeat their 34-10 triumph at Ellis Park a week ago when they stormed into a 21-6 lead after 49 minutes. But mistakes and a creaking scrum continued to plague their performance and they failed to add to their score as the gutsy Lions fought their way back into the game.

“I said to the players that if I had been offered nine points in two matches against the Lions in two weeks then I would have taken that based on where we were,” White said.

“We had to find a way to jump up the log. But we had enough chances to get the bonus point again, but we just couldn’t score again. Which was not ideal because we had set it up nicely.

“But the rain came when we had gone from 6-0 down to 21-6 up, which meant we went 21-0 in the middle block of the game, so you can’t be too upset, we were doing something right.

“I’m not satisfied that we didn’t get the bonus point, but we also can’t be arrogant. Two weeks ago we were under pressure and now we have nine more points against a Lions side that beat the Stormers in the Cape,” White pointed out.

The former Springbok coach also said that the Lions were adept at using the black arts to further frustrate his side.

“The Lions did a very good job of making the game as scrappy as possible, they were off their feet, not rolling away, hands in. And it worked because they got close to getting the result,” White said.

“But we are going to play games like this again, when the referee’s interpretations are different, and you’ve got to find ways to win when you’re under the pump.

“You’ve got to be good enough to adapt to whatever happens. And so many things happened. We just want consistency, but the same situations are being seen differently. There’s no common sense.

“But we have to be good enough to take the referee out of the equation,” White said.

Two new caps have been called up to the Sharks Currie Cup starting XV for their match against Griquas at Kings Park on Wednesday in flank OJ Noa and wing Eduan Keyter, and how the loose forward landed up in Durban is a long and winding tale.

Of Samoan heritage, Noa was born in Auckland but brought up in Australia. He made his professional debut in 2014, as a 24-year-old, for the Melbourne Rising in the National Rugby Championship. In 2016 he moved to the Canberra Vikings and played six games for them, before moving to Spain in 2018 and playing for SilverStorm El Salvador, one of that country’s leading teams, who also happen to play in black-and-white.

Noa began 2021 playing New South Wales club rugby, but, as a 31-year-old, it was a dramatic year that saw him finally make his breakthrough. The 1.93m, 110kg flank was chosen for Samoa to play in their two Rugby World Cup qualifiers against Tonga and was subsequently signed by the Sharks.

“It’s been a bit of a journey for OJ rugby-wise, but he is certainly physical, he has lovely silky hands and he can run all day,” Sharks Currie Cup coach Etienne Fynn said on Monday after announcing his team to meet Griquas.

The 25-year-old Keyter will be up against his previous team and the Affies and Maties product is a proven attacking force at Currie Cup level, so Fynn and URC coach Sean Everitt will be looking forward to seeing what he can bring after being out injured since his signing.

Also set to make their Sharks debuts are hooker Jason Alexander, the 21-year-old who has moved from Western Province to Durban, his front-row team-mate Dian Bleuler, who got to play against the British and Irish Lions last year; lock Corne Rahl, who went to the SA Rugby Academy in 2021; and former UCT captain Josh Moon, a loose forward who is going to follow in his delighted grandfather Mike’s footsteps and play for the Natal Sharks.

Sharks – Anthony Volmink, Yaw Penxe, Werner Kok, Marius Louw (c), Eduan Keyter, Jordan Chait, Cameron Wright, Mpilo Gumede, OJ Noa, Thembelani Bholi, Emile van Heerden, Gerbrandt Grobler, Lourens Adriaanse, Dan Jooste, Khwezi Mona. Replacements: Jason Alexander, Dian Bleuler, Wiehahn Herbst, Corne Rahl, Josh Moon, Sanele Nohamba, Murray Koster, Marnus Potgieter.

Amidst all the exultation over South Africa’s exceptional series win over India there has been the added positive of two exciting new faces exposing their talents with excellent performances in the Proteas Test team.

Keegan Petersen, who had played just two Tests before tackling arguably the best bowling attack in world cricket, ended as the Man of the Series, scoring 276 runs (the most) at an average of 46.00. He batted with tremendous poise, skill and toughness, but also played a pleasing array of strokes.

Marco Jansen, the 21-year-old who made his debut in the first Test at Centurion, took 19 wickets, second only to KG Rabada’s 20, at 16.47. The beanpole bowled with pace, fire and bounce, but also exhibited the priceless ability for a left-arm quick to move the ball both ways.

“We had two youngsters who just came in and played very good cricket,” Proteas coach Mark Boucher said. “Keegan did not start as well as he would have liked in the West Indies and at SuperSport Park.

“But he always showed signs of being the player we see right now. He stuck to his guns and Dean Elgar really backed him. He’s a tough nut and playing at No.3, especially in South Africa, you’ve got to be.

“You’ve got to know your game and I’m a bit lost for words at how well Keegan did. It was a big series against big players, he won Man of the Series, which was fully deserved and I’m very happy for him,” Boucher said.

While Jansen’s selection may have surprised some people, Boucher was always comfortable with it having seen what the Potchefstroom product had shown as a member of the touring squads to Pakistan and the West Indies in the last year.

“There were a lot of questions around Marco‘s selection, but we saw what he had in Pakistan and the West Indies,” Boucher said. “It was just a matter of him coming through because we knew his skill-set and the variation he brings.

“Now everyone can see what a find he is. He’s only 21, so he still has a lot of cricket to learn, but we’ve seen a lot of great signs. And he can bat as well.

“He’s going to be a superstar in the future,” Boucher said.