While the talk continues to revolve around exactly how much of a weakened team John Plumtree will field against Western Province this weekend, two players at least won’t make the trip.
Sharksworld has learned that key loose forward Willem Alberts is highly unlikely to be fit for the encounter, after a recurrence of an old knee injury against the Leoaprds last weekend. Alberts should definitely be fit for the semi-final clash the week afterwards.
JP Pietersen, the subject of a tug-of-war between the Sharks and the Lions, has somehow managed to pull a hammie while he was being reconditioned and is also unlikely to play against Province. John Plumtree has confirmed, though, that another long-term injury casualty, Adrian Jacobs, is likely to feature off the bench this week. Plumtree also revealed that he’d be keen to give Andre Pretorius another outing at flyhalf, raising questions as to whether Pat Lambie will move back into the inside centre position he filled so impressively earlier in the season, or will need to make do with a spot on the bench.
The Sharks are already assured of top spot on the ABSA Currie Cup log, while Province will need to pick up at least 4 points from the encounter to be assured of the second home semi-final slot.
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Would love to see Pat partner Andre. Chuffed Alberts will be ready for the big time. Can’t wait to see ADI back in action!!! I was also impressed with Mossie last week. He is like a bigger johann Muller!!!
Interesting 🙂 . I do think that starting with AP again is a good idea. And I really hope Adi gets decent time, 40mins atleast.
Still PLENTY of depth for us.
Any more news on Mvovo?
Our so called B team is just as good and could be better than most other teams.
I like Adi Jacobs, except in defence. He is not the greatest defender, and like the British and Irish Lions did, teams will target our already shaky centre channel.
Can someone please confirm that Braam van Straaten is coaching our kicking?
@Mocho (Comment 6) : I ain’t heard that… where did you hear it?
@robdylan (Comment 7) : I also read it somewhere, seems he is helping out as a consultant.
@Mocho (Comment 6) : Interesting – the more help the merrier I say.
Is this the combination everybody’s hoping for?
10.Pretorius
12.Lambie
13.Jacobs
Sounds like a good attacking axis, and although Lambs and AP tackle like pros, they’re all very slight players, which would worry me. Gotta have some bulk somewhere. A far cry from the days of:
10.James
12.Barritt
13.Murray
Which would stop anything in its tracks.
So Andre Pretorius is suddenly good enough. I seem to recall the majority having a total meltdown when it was confirmed that he was training with the Sharks. Fickle fickle supporters!! 🙄
Braam van Straaten was appointed kicking coach of the Aussies about a month ago.
@wpw (Comment 10) : If they are going to pick him, we might aswell support him. The only gripe we have with AP is his injury woes not his playing skills 🙄
I heard from a source that Januarie will play this weekend 😎
Jarson
If he does play and contributes to a Province victory you do know that I’ll have to remind you of this comment hey?? 😉
@wpw (Comment 14) : We are going to let you win this weekend, cause we dont want you to lose a play-off game against the Bulls again 😉
@wpw (Comment 14) : @Jarson (Comment 15) : That wont work 😳 U wont face the Bulls unless its in the final 😳 Daar maak ek my eie naam plank 😳 🙄
How could there be talk of a B team for Newlands. Does Plum want to face the Bulls in the semi final? 😯
@Original Pierre (Comment 17) : hey, if we want to win the cc, we should be able to win against any side, even with the springboks in them, so if we should play the bulls in the semi, we must win… easy as that 😀
we have the luxury of home ground advantage, so we should make the best of it. If we play wp in the semi`s and win (if…) then we should play the bulls in the final… so doesnt matter when we play them…
So JPP pulls a hammie while doing conditioning program with the Boks 🙄 Why the heck he had to go on a conditioning program was just daft. JPP, Beast and Bissie should have had more game time with the Sharks not to be sent off for conditioning. Anyhow so much for the Boks conditioning program if players pick up injuries. 😕
@Puma (Comment 19) : is it an injury, or is JPP in jhb for negotiations? 😐 but i dont think the sharks will let him go and negotiate while he can play for them… so stupid idea, scrap that.
@Jarson (Comment 15) : @VanWilder (Comment 18) : I actually think the Bulls will be weaker in the semis than they would be in the final… the Boks will only just have gotten back and they’ll still be settling in, by the time the finals kick-in they’ll be up to “full speed”…
Well that’s my theory anyway 🙂
@VanWilder (Comment 20) : JPP seems to have pulled a hammie. Read Robs article above. I also read it on Sports24. Stupid to have sent him off in the first place to do conditioning with the Boks when he actually needed game time more. Now gets injured in the conditioning program with the Boks 🙄
Yeah, Heard the Lions are after him too. Hope we can hold onto JPP as not sure when the Mapoe saga will get sorted, or maybe it wont.
@CS (Comment 21) : thats what i told my father last night. you dont want the bulls with their boks in their stride. we must play them when their still rusty. but then again, we are getting back a few boks ourselves. jp should be fit for the semi`s if i understand correctly.
@Puma (Comment 22) : jip, i read it. he will be a bigger loss to us than we can imagine. Ludick, Mvovo and Pietersen should be a solid back 3 for s15. if he goes who have we got left? Ndungane? he`s a good player, but we need speed in s15, and i doubt that Richards and Specman from the u/21s will be thrown in to s15 this early… if ever…
I just read somewhere that Plum said in an interview after the Leopards game something about “rethinking the gameplan for the play-ofs”? This makes me worry a bit 😐 😐 🙁 😯
Worry a lot actually…..
@JJR (Comment 1) : Morning all
Agree would lv to see AP and Lambie together i think they’ll be great together, if we don’t try it then we won’t know will we 😕
@Puma (Comment 22) : If we send Ndungane to the Lions in JPP’s place do you think they’ll notice 😉
@Jarson (Comment 2) : i would also put Adi in at least 40 mins and to do the starting 15 he needs game time coming off his sick leave for so long to up his game 🙂
GO SHARKS !!!
@SharksRTB (Comment 25) : that makes me happy 🙂 🙂 🙂 perhaps a return to a more structured gameplan where forwards clean out at the rucks,present the ball for the scrummie a la brumbies style in the days of george gregan ,and the backs and designated forwards strike runners getting ball.. 🙂 ..also ,a few or even 4,5 dropgoals won`t hurt the cause !! 🙂
@CS (Comment 28) : Ndugane is better than JPP at this stage, I wouldnt want either to go.
Al Hargreaves has a foot niggle, he might not play on Saturday either.
@MerckZ (Comment 9) : taken out of me mouth i think its a great combo 🙂
@VanWilder (Comment 24) : would really like to see those two u21 wingers get some serious senior gametime..and wynand pienaar
@bergshark (Comment 31) :I agree to an extent…… BUT do you really change your gameplan after 14 games, which was successfull. To a game plan not tried in a play-of?
Beast squad x 3 @ 245 kg…Brok Harris the “Beast” is coming for you… 😈
@VanWilder (Comment 24) : Would be a huge loss to lose JPP. Sharks must find a way to keep him. I know Lions have made a huge offer so it might be difficult for us. Hope we can get the Mapoe saga sorted out too, but that as well seems like it never will. We may have to start looking to our u21’s
@wpw (Comment 10) : well we knew how he played and was great in it until his head got so big after some games just as BB fans get sometimes and i did say he must prove himself until then we hold in the side line of good players and well he looked like he is the old AP again and like we hv him on the team why nt get his Black and White jersey dirty you only get one chance in the B&W so use it while you can. 😉
@SharksRTB (Comment 36) : sound like something the AB would do in a world cup… change their game plan. worked wonders for them up until now… 🙄 😆
@Puma (Comment 22) :
please dont break our players 😈
@Jarson (Comment 15) :
😉
@Jarson (Comment 32) : You’re right… lately Ndungane has been trying really hard, even though his handling has been letting him down a bit (However, his effort has been putting Mvovo to shame…quite alarming to read Mvovo only made 3 tackle attempts last weekend!)
@CS (Comment 28) : bring it the table and maybe Plumpie will notice and give JJP a new contract that he can’t refuse if he does go its going to hit us hard 😉
@Charlie (Comment 30) : hi Adi its by time you get to play nd welcome back my friend
From one Sharks to another
@CS (Comment 43) : Mvovo only made 1 tackle vs the Lions.
@chaz (Comment 45) : I’m looking forward to seeing the new Sharks backline in action in the Super 15 next year… we’ve been a bit one dimensional in the CC, but with the new recruits ala JLP and Meyer Bosman and with Adi back I reckon we’ll have one of the best backlines… on paper anyway
@SharksRTB (Comment 36) : well the teams will want to win the CC so agree to some extent to change game plan but behind close doors they ‘ll be doing their HW with the games played and if we restructer the game play we’ll hv a all new ball game thats if we can pull it off 😕
@CS (Comment 47) : 10: JLP/Lambie
12: Lambie/Meyer Bosman
13: Adi
11: Mvovo
14. JPP (hopefully)
15. Ludik
The only SA team that comes close to topping that is WP (but they’ll have an out-of-form Habana that we can exploit like the Aussies did 😈 )
@CS (Comment 47) : not just on paper but in the game to well hope so anyway we need to start working towards the S15 start useing our B team we hv a lot of yougster coming through so use them then at least we hv two teams that can play senior rugby if given time to do so 🙂
@CS (Comment 43) : you only need to tackle what’s in front of you. The fact that Ludik made no tackles at all suggests to me that the Leoaprds weren’t good enough to get anywhere near him. The fact that they scored no tries kinda confirms this.
We don’t need our guys making tackles just for the sake of it… sounds like we expect Mvovo and Ludik to run around behind the posts tackling our own reserves during the game just to get their stats up 🙂
@chaz (Comment 45) : 😆 😆 😆
@robdylan (Comment 51) : 😆
@robdylan (Comment 51) : No dude, 😆 it’s only because I saw Mvovo running next to the Lions on attack for 10-15metres instead of tackling the guy.
@Jarson (Comment 54) : 😈
@Jarson (Comment 54) : And I’ll feel better knowing that all the players can tackle when needed to do so.
@Jarson (Comment 54) : agree rugby is a tackling game not just a runing game so we need all our players to tackle when they need to 😉
@chaz (Comment 57) : …when they need to… 😈
@robdylan (Comment 51) : hey rob, is that you in the suit in the spur advert at the bottom? 😉
@Charlie (Comment 58) : @Charlie (Comment 55) : @Charlie (Comment 53) : @Charlie (Comment 52) : U don’t talk much, do you? 😈
@Charlie (Comment 58) : hey charlie, i think we should sell adi to the lions… whats your thoughts on that?? 😉
@Jarson (Comment 60) :
😉
@Charlie (Comment 58) : well i seen alot of games when not just Mvovo just run beside the guy i feel tackle and stimes i’m watching the game and see the guys just runing beside the player and waiting to tackle why not just tsackle why wait until he runs passed some players and then tackle, but thats me and the way i feel how the game must be played 🙂
@VanWilder (Comment 61) : 👿 👿 👿 👿 👿 😉
Adi is overrated!! 🙄
@wpw (Comment 65) : all our players are over rated we are Shark SUPPORTERS
@wpw (Comment 65) : I’ll remind you of this comment when he scores the winning try this weekend 😉
@Jarson (Comment 67) :
@Jarson (Comment 67) : @wpw (Comment 65) : and atleast our players is overeated 😈
@Jarson (Comment 69) : I’m gonna shut up now. Sorry WP 😳 It was supposed to be: our players are not over-eated 😳
@Jarson (Comment 70) : i think megatron got hold of wpw`s login password…
@VanWilder (Comment 71) : 😯 eeeeaaahhh
now that i would hv to agree on 😳 at least he is not giving me hard time 😳 he can hv WP anytime 🙂 i need a rest for a while from meg comments 😆 😉
@Jarson (Comment 60) : I just do my job 😉
@wpw (Comment 65) : You still enjoying Barney ? 😳
@VanWilder (Comment 61) : Reason ?
@Charlie (Comment 73) : Which is ❓ 😉
@chaz (Comment 66) : 😆 😆 😆
@Jarson (Comment 76) : Having a jol on the paddock…
@Jarson (Comment 67) : 😈 😈 😈
Van Wilder
If that was the case I’d be flirting with chaz wouldn’t I?? 😉
Jarson
Touche
@wpw (Comment 80) : please don’t its enough that megi is on my case eee its all in a good joke 😉
@wpw (Comment 80) : yeah, makes sence… 😉 but youve been giving us alot of flack over the last 2 days. it because we play the mountain goats this weekend?
@VanWilder (Comment 82) : you hit the nail on just right
@robdylan (Comment 7) : It was in the Sunday papers. Andre Pretorius gave an interview right after some kicking practice with Braam . . .