‘Not pretty, but we’ll take it’

“WET, muddy and a win, that was great!” That was how Sharks assistant coach Grant Bashford described the weekend’s victory over Western Province.

“We knew when that rain came that it wasn’t going to be a pretty affair; we knew with that wet that the chances of picking up a bonus point would be slim because the weather wasn’t conducive to bonus point try-scoring rugby.

“So it was a huge positive, given the conditions, that we got the bonus point, helped by Western Province’s ill-discipline with three players getting sent off the field. We took what was given to us.”

In the waterlogged conditions, the Sharks won the kicking game – which was important in those conditions – and they took their opportunities.

“Meyer Bosman slotted almost all the kicks that came his way [nine from 10], and territory was really important and we won that battle,” Bashford said.

“Given the soggy pitch, we were pretty happy with the way we went,” Bashford said.

“All the feedback on the game as a spectacle, considering the conditions, was positive. We made fewer handling errors than in dry games, so it was a pleasing performance, given the conditions.”

The Lions are ahead of the Sharks on points’ difference after having won away from home on the weekend against the Cheetahs, and will be the favourites for this weekend’s match against the Sharks.

Confidence

“They will go into this game full of confidence against us,” Bashford said. “Going to CocaCola Park the last couple of times hasn’t been a particularly pleasing experience for us, but it is a great challenge to get up and try get one over them. We’re sitting nicely on the log and a win this weekend would position us well over the last three games.”

Hopefully the Sharks will now be getting more injured players back into their system, rather than the other way.

Centre Paul Jordaan is available after concussion suffered against Griquas last week, and veteran lock Steven Sykes is over the rib injury that sidelined him over the past fortnight.

SA under-20 lock PieterSteph du Toit is also not far off his return from an ankle injury. Bashford added that the management were pleased with the return from a longstanding hand injury of centre Tim Whitehead against Western Province.

“Tim had a long lay-off but slotted back nicely into the team. The conditions were probably also conducive for him, we were very happy with the way he came back.”

College Rovers were made to sweat against EP’s Despatch, after being 30-28 down with six minutes to play in their quarter-final of the National Club Rugby Championship in Rustenburg yesterday match.

However, a try by scrumhalf Shannon Rick and two penalties from replacement fullback Kobus de Kock allowed them to win 41-30 and they will now face Old Selbornians in tomorrow’s semi-finals.

Old Boys produced an upset in beating Valke champions Brakpan 28-26 in the first quarter-final of the day.

Hosts Rustenburg Impala will face Pretoria Police in a heavyweight semi-final after both sides recorded impressive quarter-final wins.

Impala, playing in front of a large home crowd, were made to work hard against Roodepoort in the day’s main match before winning 31-19.