Preview: DHL Western Province vs. Hollywoodbets Sharks XV:
The Hollywoodbets Sharks XV go into this weekend’s Carling Currie Cup clash with DHL Western Province riding a wave of confidence, but also grounded in the knowledge that their opponents will throw everything at the visiting Durban team.
Hollywoodbets Sharks Currie Cup head coach JP Pietersen has had the good fortune of having two URC players available for this game after a frustrating injury toll.
“We had a few injuries in the Free State game, we’ve lost Jannes Potgieter, Lili Bester and Hakeem Kunene, all of them unfortunately suffering concussions in that game which forced changes. Thanks to Plum [URC head coach John Plumtree] for making Jurenzo Julius and Francois Venter available to help us out this weekend.”
Having defeated the reigning Currie Cup champions in Bloemfontein last weekend, Pietersen agrees that his side is riding a wave of momentum but warns that even though Province are struggling with their form in the Currie Cup this season, they are worthy of respect.
“We believe we can go down to Cape Town and give Province a good fight. I think they have the same belief, that they can beat us. We have confidence as a group but we still have to execute on the day. What happened in Bloemfontein gives us confidence, but this is a whole new challenge.”
Province’s season mirrors that of Pietersen’s side in the early stages of the tournament and he credits the leadership for guiding the young team.
“We went through a very difficult stage in the beginning, but massive credit to Nick Hatton, a young captain who has pulled the group together and led well, not just talking but on the field as well.
“We had a belief that we could compete in this competition and we showed what the talent in this group can produce. We’re in a good place, but that doesn’t mean the job is done.”
Assessing his opposition, he sees similarities with his own young team.
“We’re in a similar boat, trying to blood a young group and club players who are coming through. Results haven’t always gone their way but they’ve played well in a few games.
“Our expectations of meeting them in Cape Town is that they bring massive pride playing at home, it’s going to be a tough game against a group that’s desperate to put things right.
“They’re a group that works hard and loves to show the fans what they’ve been doing. The scoreboard hasn’t done justice to what they have been doing and we know it’s going to be a tough encounter.
“We’ve prepared well for a very physical contest, we expect a real grinding out of a game.”
With nothing to lose and everything to gain, Province will come out all guns blazing and Pietersen expects nothing less from this proud union, as he would any other team.
“We respect every team we play against, this is a good group that plays well and has good individuals in it. I know this Western Province team will be up for it and they will take the game to us.
“I’ve told my team to never underestimate your opponent and to always respect the opposition. Play the game as hard as you can, every game. We were in a similar situation earlier in the tournament, losing three in a row, so we do understand what it takes.
“I think it’s going to be a good game.”
The post Preview: DHL Western Province vs. Hollywoodbets Sharks XV appeared first on The Sharks Durban.
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Quick Durban KwaZulu-Natal Fact: Cato Manor in Durban once attracted attention from around the world because it was where rioting broke out in 1959 in protest against the city’s beerhalls and the looming prospect of mass forced removals in which the residents would be uprooted from their homes in terms of the notorious Group Areas Act, and resettled in townships. The area was granted to George Christopher Cato in 1865, perhaps as a reward for his years of community service and for the fact that, in 1854, he had become Durban’s first Mayor. The land was sub-divided in the early 1900s and leased to Indian market gardeners, many of whom were either former indentured labourers, who had come to South Africa to work on the sugar plantations, or their descendents.
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