Windhoek Draught Griquas vs Cell C Sharks Match Preview:
The Cell C Sharks are in Kimberley for tonight’s Carling Currie Cup clash with Windhoek Draught Griquas expecting nothing less than a committed and highly physical welcome from the hosts.
Head coach Etienne Fynn believes his team go into this match well-prepared and ready for what Griquas will throw at them. The men from Kimberley have always brought a lot of pride to their home games and many and traditionally big five team have arrived with confidence and left in disappointment.
The Cell C Sharks have focussed on their game and producing the goods for this first of the return leg round.
“In a nutshell, the focus of our preparation has been on managing the small moments in a game,” Fynn explains.
Remaining in the running for a top four finish is vital, but the coach admits that he is hesitant to call this game a ‘must-win’.
“The emphasis or focus on winning matches is always there and no doubt, this is a very important game for us. After starting with four wins on the trot then slipping against the Bulls and Free State, both games we could have won and were in up to a point, going away to Kimberley and winning will kick-start the rest of our campaign.
“Turning it into a must-win puts undue pressure on players to manage, but the expectation is to come away with a positive result.”
His expectations of Griquas and what they will bring reflects the thoughts of many a coach over the last number of years.
“Griquas have traditionally been extremely tough and uncompromising at home in Kimberley, we expect the same tonight.
Their forwards love to get stuck in and the set-piece will be a crucial part of the game, for both sides.
“Griquas have good coaches and good structures, and they have some experienced campaigners; they’re more than competent when it comes to the set-piece. We’ve prepared accordingly, whether it rains or it’s a typical Kimberley balmy evening, we will be fine as far as set-piece goes.
“I expect it to be a traditional Currie Cup match, guys getting stuck into each other. That never changes in our national competition.”
The selection of flankers James Venter and Dylan Richardson together in the back row suggests a fierce competition and the duo, who bring a lot of energy, will present great nuisance factor as players Fynn explains.
“Dylan has come back from a sustained injury-related break, he was due a start, he’s an international class player and he can fulfil any role in the loose trio, be that to carry or slow the ball down or just to cover a lot of ground. He has a massive engine as has James, so we do expect them to be quick around the park and bring an exceptionally high work rate.”
There is also plenty of experience in the second row with the return to play of Ruben van Heerden after an injury lay-off.
“Ruben van Heerden and Hyron Andrews have played many games at senior level for the Cell C Sharks, so we’re very happy to have them starting for us. Ruben is back from injury, he’s trained really well over the last few weeks and has now been cleared to play so he comes back into the starting line-up.
“Both he and Hyron have proper engines and contribute all over the park.”
The post Windhoek Draught Griquas vs Cell C Sharks Match Preview appeared first on The Sharks.
The return leg of the Carling Currie Cup kicks off this week with the Cell C Sharks travelling to Kimberley to take on the Windhoek Draught Griquas in their second round match on Wednesday afternoon.
After a tightly-contested opening round 24-23 victory over Griquas at Hollywoodbets Kings Park in January, Griquas will be highly motivated to return the favour at their home ground, a venue that hasn’t always been very kind to visiting teams.
With further wins over DHL Western Province, the Sigma Lions and Airlink Pumas, the Cell C Sharks will look to build on their early form that handed them four wins from their first four rounds.
Three points separate the two teams on the log, with the Cell C Sharks currently sitting in third place on 18 points while Griquas occupy fourth position on 15 points.
Cell C Sharks Currie Cup head coach Etienne Fynn has made three changes to his team, two of them rotational as he brings in livewire flank Dylan Richardson for Thembelani Bholi in the only change to the pack.
There are two changes amongst the backs, with Jeremy Ward moving from outside centre to the inside centre berth in place of Ethan Fisher with Marnus Potgieter wearing the number 13 jersey and another positional switch where Lloyd Koster coming in at wing for Yaw Penxe who moves to fullback in place of Jordan Chait
Following on from their outstanding form in junior rugby, Cell C Sharks Under 20 scrumhalf and flyhalf Bradley Davids and Jean Smith have earned a call-up to the Currie Cup team and will look to feature off the bench in the latter part of the game.
Wednesday evening’s clash at Windhoek Draught Park kicks off at 5.45pm.
Cell C Sharks
1. Dian Bleuler
2. Fez Mbatha
3. Wiehahn Herbst
4. Ruben van Heerden
5. Hyron Andrews
6. James Venter (c)
7. Dylan Richardson
8. Celimpilo Gumede
9. Cameron Wright (v/c)
10. Tito Bonilla
11. Curwin Gertse
12. Jeremy Ward
13. Marnus Potgieter
14. Lloyd Koster
15. Yaw Penxe
Replacements
16. Dan Jooste
17. Khwezi Mona
18. Lourens Adriaanse
19. Corne Rahl
20. OJ Noah
21. Thembelani Bholi
22. Bradley Davids
23. Jean Smith
The post Second Round Action appeared first on The Sharks.
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Quick Durban KwaZulu-Natal Fact: Geography – The Kwazulu Natalprovince has three different geographic areas. The lowland region along the Indian Ocean coast is extremely narrow in the south, widening in the northern part of the province. The central region is the Natal Midlands and is an undulating hilly plateau rising towards the west. Two mountainous areas are contained in this area, the Drakensberg Mountains in the west and the Lebombo Mountains in the north. The Drakensberg is a solid wall of basalt, rising over 3000m skyward near the Lesotho border, whilst the Lebombo Mountains are ancient granite mountains, forming low parallel ranges running southward from Swaziland. The Tugela River flows west to east, across the center of the province and is the region’s largest river. The coastal regions typically have subtropical thickets and deeper ravines and steep slopes host some true Afromontane Forest. The midlands have moist grasslands and isolated pockets of Afromontane Forest. The north has a primarily moist savanna habitat, whilst the Drakensberg region hosts mostly alpine grassland. The former Eastern Cape enclave, of the town of Umzimkulu and its hinterland, have been incorporated into KwaZulu-Natal, following the 12th amendment of the Constitution of South Africa. The amendment also made other changes to the southern border of the province.
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