The Cell C Sharks greeted a game Griquas side with a measure of hostility as they ran out deserved 41-3 victors in a tough and uncompromising Currie Cup clash at Growthpoint KINGS PARK on Friday evening.
Perfect conditions greeted the two sides for a match played under clear skies and late winter temps more suited to spring.
The game couldn’t have gotten off to a better start as we attacked off a scrum on the halfway line and with the clash barely two minutes old, Sbu Nkosi kept the ball alive after breaking down the touchline and fed Jeremy Ward who went over for the first try of the game. Curwin Bosch converted to give the Cell C Sharks maximum points.
Shortly afterwards, Thomas du Toit earned a penalty as he competed well for the ball on the ground which elicited a round of back-slapping from every member of the team.
It was a clear indication of the brotherhood amongst the players and a reminder of how competitive they are.
The penalty was sent to touch and from the resulting attacking lineout, a try-saving tackle into touch saved Griquas from further blushes. They had barely had a sniff of possession and were forced to defend manfully.
Having seen so little of ball possession, Griquas almost didn’t know what to do with it and when they did, frequently fluffed their lines. They were forced to defend their 22 for most of the opening quarter of the game and on the 20 minute mark, Bosch added a penalty to his earlier conversion to send the Cell C Sharks into a 10-nil lead with Griquas hardly registering so much as a sniff of possession in our half.
But when they eventually earned possession and territory, they built up a strong attack, taking the ball through numerous phases before earning a penalty that finally had them on the scoreboard after 25 minutes of play.
The game was being played at a frenzied pace and both sides contributed to an entertaining spectacle that was all about exciting, attacking rugby.
The second try was a thing of true beauty as Garth April twice had a hand in the movement which set up Sbu Nkosi’s try as he gathered the pinpoint grubber to dive over, Kobus van Wyk prominent in gaining valuable ground. Bosch converted his fourth attempt for a 100% kicking record as he pushed the Cell C Sharks into a commanding 17-3 lead with barely five minutes of the half remaining and that was how the teams went into the change-rooms.
The second half got off to a rocking start as arguably every player in our team had a hand in the build up to an outstanding collective effort, rounded off by the ever-present, hard-working Jacques Vermeulen, certainly a candidate for the Man of the Match award. Bosch was on point again with the conversion.
Griquas have proven themselves quite capable of scoring lots of points in this Currie Cup campaign, but they were finding the going difficult and not quite to their liking as the tries had been scored against them with regularity. Indeed, the bonus point try came with half an hour of the match remaining, Juan Schoeman working his way over the tryline to give us a strong, 29-3 lead.
Griquas have regularly proved to be a thorn in the side of past Cell C Sharks teams but tonight they had no answer nor counter to the home team’s determination and ultimately their superior ambition and desire to win.
As the game went into the final quarter, Sbu Nkosi showed great strength and agility to bust through a couple of tackles to score his second – and our fifth – try to put the game well and truly out of doubt.
At 34-3, there was only one side in it and to both teams’ credit, neither gave up the search for further scoring opportunities, although like the Pumas last week, Griquas simply couldn’t penetrate some truly committed and outstanding defence from the Cell C Sharks.
There was time for just one more try, barely seconds until the clock struck 80 minutes, when Sbu Nkosi made a fantastic break and Cameron Wright rounded off the attack. Inny Radebe converted to take the score into the 40s and that was the game.
It was a performance our team can be proud of.
The post Comprehensive Victory appeared first on Sharks Rugby.
Week three of the Currie Cup brings Griquas to Durban as they look to turn their good form into winning form against the Cell C Sharks this Friday night at Growthpoint KINGS PARK.
Griquas have been competitive in their two high scoring matches to date, but they’re on the hunt for an elusive victory. The Cell C Sharks stand between a third consecutive loss and a first win, and knowing Griquas, there is every fear that they will be striving to accomplish the latter option.
Many a team has tripped up against the men from Kimberley, a side that remains intact throughout the year, enjoying momentum and continuity in team selection from their first competitive match to their last.
This makes them a perennial danger to teams like the Cell C Sharks.
While they’re not quite our bogey side we have tripped up against them more than once in the Currie Cup and head coach Robert du Preez is well aware of just how dangerous a threat they pose.
“They’re a very good attacking side so we’re going to have to be really up for it. Something we’ve talked about amongst ourselves is that we cannot disrespect the opposition. It’s really important for us to do well against Griquas.
“Sides like the Pumas and Griquas are very competitive sides and if you let teams like Griquas into the game, you’re going to be in for a tough day at the office. We saw that in the first 40 minutes in our game against the Pumas, when we only scored three points; they’re tough sides to play against. There are no easy games.”
Ruan Botha captained the team last week and continues in his leadership role this weekend, explaining that the team will be looking to put last week’s first half behind them, but definitely look to continue where they left off in the second half.
“Our focus this week is on holding on to the ball and avoiding 50-50 stuff. We want to keep building phases and the wall will eventually break.”
Of Griquas, he makes it clear that there is a lot of respect for them.
“From a forwards’ perspective, they’re probably one of the toughest packs we will face – and that’s no disrespect to the other teams. Griquas always like to come and show that they are capable of with a mentality of trying to dominate you physically, so we’re going to have to front up for the fight.”
With three games played in the matter of just over a week, Griquas this Friday, the Bulls next Wednesday and the Lions a few days later (on Saturday), the Cell C Sharks have their work cut out for them.
This busy period will be a thorough test for the team, but one in which they will accept the challenge.
The coach said he would be using a squad of around 25 players over the course of this very busy period in the competition.
“We don’t want to lose continuity, to play the Bulls with a completely different side to the Lions probably won’t work out for us,” he explained. “We will need to adapt our training though and with a tough week this week, we’ll have to tone it down next week when we play two games.”
Look out for the green armbands the players will be wearing in support of the Jes Foord Foundation during Women’s Month.
The post Upping the Tempo appeared first on Sharks Rugby.
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