Five Leinster players the Sharks will have to shut down
THE Sharks will only hit Irish shores today as they prepare to take on topof-the-log Leinster in Saturday's United Rugby Championship quarter-final.
While the Durban side will be without two of their most influential Springboks in captain Siya Kolisi and lock Eben Etzebeth, Leinster will be hoping their big guns can continue their domination after a brilliant display in the Champions Cup at the weekend.
Here, Leighton Koopman takes a look at five players the Sharks will have to shut down during the match, if they are to stand a chance of progressing to the semi-finals.
The Irish flank recently returned from an ankle injury and made an immediate impact in Leinster's Champions Cup win over Toulouse this past weekend.
He is always prominent around the park and will be a handful for the Sharks defenders to contain. Van der Flier is one of the primary ball-carriers for his team and it will be up to the Sharks forwards to halt any runs he comes up with.
But, there is also his poaching abilities at the breakdown where the Durban side's cleaners will play an important role in shutting him down.
His triple threat comes in the form of the lineouts where he ranks for the balls, but also controls Leinster's rolling maul.
Jack Conan
His work rate on and off the ball is simply outstanding and just like Van der Flier he gets around the park in non-stop fashion.
The No 8 loves getting stuck in at the rucks and tackles with almost no regard for his body. In the recent Champions Cup last eight match against Toulouse, he made more than 15 tackles and was ever-present when it came to carrying the ball in contact.
That is what the Sharks can expect from the Irish international, a full 80 minutes of hard work.
Hugo Keenan
When and if he gets the opportunity, he will run at the Sharks, looking for space to exploit.
Keenan has been a revelation for Leinster at fullback and will be a handful if he does run out in the quarter-final. He is not afraid to put his body on the line when he runs it from the back, but in the same breath he can turn the Sharks forwards around with his boot.
Leinster love to mix it up and will be looking to use Keenan as one of the unpredictable players to cause havoc for their visitors.
Ross Byrne
The flyhalf has been sublime since taking over the duties from the injured Johnny Sexton, Leinster's first-choice No 10.
Byrne, who has been the backup for a while, has shown that he does not have to play second-fiddle to his Irish international teammate. The Leinster flyhalf has been slotting his kicks at goal, he is brilliant when it comes to relieving pressure with his big boot and does not shy away from creating space for his backline when carrying the ball into contact.
The Sharks will have to sharpen their discipline to curb Byrne and his boot after he kicked Toulouse into submission.
Jamison Gibson-Park
The nippy scrumhalf pulls the strings for Leinster.
He marshals his forwards excellently when he wants the ball to be kept up front. But, he can also speed up the play when the backline wants to run with the ball. And one of his outstanding abilities is how he snipes around the rucks, catching defenders unaware.
The Sharks will also have to be secure under the high balls as Gibson-Park loves putting up bombs to put opposition outside backs under immense pressure in their half.