THE FAF FACTOR
Sharks World Cup winner De Klerk presents ultimate test for Edinburgh scrum-half Shiel
WHEN it comes to testing yourself against the best, the barometer for any young scrum-half is clear. The names of Faf de Klerk and Antoine Dupont stand head and shoulders above the rest as the two best nines in world rugby at the moment.
Dupont has orchestrated a revolution in French rugby over the past year and the Toulouse man was deservedly named Player of the Championship in this year’s Six Nations.
De Klerk is the South African equivalent. The little blond-haired maestro was in irrepressible form as the Springboks won the World Cup in Japan last year.
He will captain Sale Sharks t onight in t heir Heineken Champions Cup clash with Edinburgh — and the challenge f or his Scottish counterpart Charlie Shiel could not be greater.
On what will be his first- ever start in the Champions Cup, Shiel has been pitched in against one of the best in the business and his battle with Sale’s Springbok superstar will be key.
It is the ultimate acid test for a player whose only previous experience of the European Cup was a four-minute cameo in the quarter-final against Munster in 2019.
Yet, for all he is a rookie at the top level of European competition, Shiel does have experience of big games.
He started in the Challenge Cup quarter-final defeat to Bordeaux last season. He also scored an outstanding solo try against Glasgow Warriors post-lockdown in August.
Now 23 years old, this could be a night when he comes of age — and Edinburgh forwards coach Steve Lawrie is backing Shiel (pictured right) to shine against the man known simply as Faf.
‘It’s massive for him, what a great opportunity,’ said Lawrie ahead of what is a must-win game in Manchester.
‘Faf ’s an excellent player, but we recognise that Charlie has a lot of the same characteristics that Faf has.
‘In terms of his ability to speed up a game and his running threat — i f you l ook at Faf, t hat’s probably one of his biggest strengths, along with his toughness.
‘So it’s a massive opportunity for Charlie.
‘He’s at a stage now where he’s played a good bit of rugby for us, whether that be off the bench or the couple of starts that he’s got.
‘It’s a case of him taking that opportunity. At nine, there is no hiding place. You’re one of the leaders within the group.
‘Charlie’s developing that side of his game nicely. It’s a process. I don’t think you ever turn round and say: “All of a sudden, he’s gone from a young prospect into an a bsolutely e s t a bl i s hed member (of the squad).”
‘ He’s going t hrough t hat process and it’s our job as coaches to bleed it appropriately. But if you’re good enough you’re old enough, aren’t you?
‘If he puts in a good performance, then he puts himself in the best place to start the next game.’
Richard Cockerill’s side travel to the AJ Bell stadium knowing they simply have no margin for error following their defeat to La Rochelle in the opening game last weekend.
Against a Sale s i de who currently si t f ourth in t he English Premiership, Edinburgh have named a strong team, albeit not quite fully-loaded.
Scotland stars Jamie Ritchie and Darcy Graham miss out due to SRU r est protocols, as does Henry Pyrgos, but there’s still plenty of talent and experience elsewhere.
S tua r t McInally wi l l c a pt a i n Edinburgh as he makes his 150th appearance f or the club, with Chris Dean also reaching the 100- game miles t one in midfield. Magnus Bradbury takes Ritchie’s place at blindside flanker and is joined in a powerful back row by Bill Mata and Hamish Watson. Jaco van der Walt will look to offer a steadying hand to Shiel in the half-backs, while Duhan van der Merwe and Blair Kinghorn make up the back three along with Jack Blain. With next weekend’s proposed 1872 Cup clash with Glasgow called off, this will now be Edinburgh’s last game of 2020 and Lawrie is keen to put on a show. ‘We pick every team to win the game,’ he said. ‘We want to win this game in the here and now. ‘Obviously getting one point from the first game means you need to win the second game when you only have four matches. ‘That’s the way we’re looking at it. We’re going down there to put in a performance and to get the points.
‘Even if you’re not in the top comp, you might be in the middle comp.
‘That’s really important to us, to make sure we’re playing games on the biggest stage we can.’
After Sale parted company with their long-serving director of rugby Steve Diamond last week, Paul Deacon will now be taking charge of the side.
But Lawrie isn’t expecting a radical change in their style.
‘Paul was obviously coaching there before, so i t’s not l i ke they’ve changed their coaching group massively,’ he said.
‘I would expect them to be doing more of the same. They’ve got a combative style with the personnel they’ve got.
‘With the South Africans in their team, they want to play that physical, on-the-gain-line type of game We know their style and we’ve previewed them well.
‘They will look to play in the appropriate areas and they’ve got a pretty set structure as well. We’re r e ady f or t he challenge.’