De Klerk: We can beat the best on our day!
SALE Sharks have already proven they can beat anyone on their day but their maddening inconsistency must be stamped out this weekend – according to scrum-half Faf de Klerk.
The Sharks are sitting fifth in the Premiership standings and have claimed impressive wins over Saracens, Gloucester and Wasps already this season.
Next up is a trip to St James’ Park to take on bottom side Newcastle today. But the Falcons are on a twogame winning run which has breathed new life into their survival bid.
And after shipping 60 points in defeat to Northampton Saints last month and slipping to a home defeat against Exeter Chiefs in recent weeks, De Klerk knows his side need to hit their straps.
“As a squad, we are in a good spot in the table,” he said.
“But as a season it has been a bit up and down, if we are at our best we can beat the best.
“And if we are off it, then we get quite a few points against us.
“It shows where this team can go. We are heading in the right direction and hopefully going forward we can become one of the top teams consistently. “Personally, I think I am a bit inconsistent as well but, hopefully, in the coming game I can lift that and play with some intensity.” The Sharks are seven points off Gloucester in fourth and need a win to keep their play-off push alive. They welcome back Six Nations breakout star Tom Curry to the back row for the clash as well as Scotland wing Byron McGuigan. Loosehead prop Ross Harrison returns to the front row after a threegame absence through injury, while Josh Beaumont moves forward to the second row. Skipper Jono Ross takes the Number 8 shirt
The Sharks have not done the double over the Falcons since the 2014-15 season and the Falcons are also boosted by Curry’s England back-row colleague Mark Wilson’s return as skipper.
And the threat of the returning Vereniki Goneva – hero at St James’ Park last season when they downed Northampton – means De Klerk knows his side must be at their best.
“It’s a funny one, Newcastle can play really well and have many game breakers in their team,” added the Springbok scrum-half.
“We don’t see it as a game against the bottom of the table, we have to pitch up and if we don’t they have plenty of players that can punish us.
“They are a very threatening team that can beat anyone on their day so we will have to be on it.”
Sharks’ director of rugby Steve Diamond added: “We’ve had a hard training week and have been quite physical. Hopefully, we’ve prepared well for Newcastle at St James’ Park.
“There’s no bigger challenge, they were top four last season, and their present position doesn’t reflect their abilities, as shown by their last two results.
“This is our hardest game so far, the Falcons are in a corner and will be fighting for their lives and we need to make sure we’re as desperate for a result.”
If we are at our best we can beat the best, if we are off it, we get a few points against us
Faf de Klerk