Forgive me for misunderstanding or jumping to conclusions, but have the Bulls somehow already won through to the Currie Cup final without even having to play in the semi? Reading through the assorted commentary on this site and in other places, it’s a completely sensible conclusion.
There seems to be a pervading sense of inevitability that has crept into the communal psyche this week – and it seems nobody, not even the most die-hard Sharks fans (the ones who visit this site!) is prepared to give the Sharks any chance whatsoever of winning this game. The rationale and excuses are cliched and predictable and mostly focus on the Bulls ‘knowing how to win semi-finals’ or some kak like that. News flash, guys. It’s not that hard to win a semi; the secret is to score more points than the opposition.
Another supposed reason for the inevitable defeat we have coming is that the Bulls, who incidentally have played kak rugby all Currie Cup long, are suddenly unstoppable because they have all their Boks back. Well, we have our Boks back too – just as many, it turns out – and furthermore, theirs are just as rusty and unfit as ours are. I’ve chatted to some guys who played against them last week and they were far from impressed with the conditioning of the so-called superheroes of Loftus.
Furthermore, this championship aura they have is a myth that needs to be debunked. They are missing their general at scrumhalf and we have all seen how their flyhalf starts to look decidedly average as a result. They have a journeyman front row and further weaknesses at open-side flank, outside centre, wing and fullback. There is no doubt in my mind that the Sharks top them, man-for-man, in terms of talent and ability.
I reckon that we Sharks fans need to grow a frikking backbone already! I spoke to a mate yesterday, who supports the Bulls (I know! The shame!) and the sense of confidence in their team that these guys have is frankly unbelievable. It’s arrogant, sure, but imagine how much of a lift it must give to the players knowing that their fans have such an unshakable belief that they will win.
Any Sharks players reading some of the stuff here would wonder if they actually have any true fans at all. My take on this is simple – if you’re a Sharks supporter worthy of the name, then you believe, not only that we CAN win on Saturday, but that we WILL win. Anything less than that and you may as well be wearing a blue jersey and a helmet with plastic horns on it.
To the Sharks – I’m behind you guys all the way. Black and white – let’s stand up and fight!
Tweet
Hey dit is die mentalieteit van arogante bul ondersteuners!!! GO SHARKS!!!
Nice one Rob! I’ve been wondering if all the Sharks supporters has gone on a holiday. It blows my mind that all the sites and comments are talking about how the Bulls are going to klap the Sharks.
I say bring it on! We are better, fitter and we will wipe the floor with them this Saturday.
Looking forward to a Sharks vs Cheetahs final in Durban… 😆
@The Quirk (Comment 3) :
Im with you there.. I reckon a final in Durbs vs the Bloemfontein Cheeters
The Sharks need to dominate up front and make sure that the Bulls don’t get the ball. The Bulls have leaked a lot of tries this year and the Sharks should exploit the 2 Jaco’s to win this game. Go the Sharks
I like your title Rob, we can do this! It will obviously be a tough game and I’m hoping that Sharks fans will pack out the tank and make it all the more difficult for the Bulls! Stand up and fight!
@The Quirk (Comment 3) : @Richard Ferguson (Comment 4) :
Last time I checked the Cheetahs were YOUR bogey team, not ours!!
😉
it will be tough, but i am confident that the bulls can win it (note that i say can, and not will).
but i have the utmost confidence in my team and the coaches and management. they have been there, and they know what to do.
and as for our perceived weaknesses, sure they might not be the best in their positions, but we have won multiple S14’s and CC’s with those players.
going to be an awesome game of rugby, and i think it will go down to the wire.
i think sharks biggest advantage is that they have the game breakers to win a tight game. daniel, mvovo, kanko, lambie can produce a single moment of magic, that might just be enough to win it.
but i promise you, if you win, if will not be easy. the bulls can and will step up (irrespective of weaknesses, and rusty players, and all that jazz).
bring it on!!
@wpw (Comment 7) :
We kinda took them apart this year so far.. Or am I wrong?
Aaahhh the psyche of the rugby supporter.
I love breaking it down!
Bulls have only lost 2 out of 16 semi-finals over the years.
Against the Sharks it’s played 3 won 3.
History to be made on Saturday?
@bloubulblog (Comment 8) :
“(irrespective of weaknesses, and rusty players, and all that jazz).”
You a blou bull supporter? Surely you mean “all that jizz” then? Don’t you?
“This is a call to arms
Gather soldiers
Time to go to war
This is a battle song
Brothers and sisters
Time to go to war”
Lyrics from the song Vox Populi by Thirty Seconds to Mars
Let’s hope the majority of the Sharks players are not picking up on the vibe of the majority of their “supporters”…
GO SHARKS!!!
Of course we can do it… it’s a home game afterall.
Bring it on Bulls !! There will only be a winner once the final whistle blows , not before !! We also have 22 players , also play with the same ball , have the same ref and linesman so any talk of having won before the game is premature ! ?It all boils down to who wants it most on the day and who uses their chances . They say winning is a habbit but I say we want it more !! Our boys are hungry ….
c,mon rob, you know the sharks hate the favourites tag. we are doing them a favour by making them underdogs. my gut feel is the boks aren’t going to be as hot as people expect. this should hurt the bulls more than the sharks. my only concern is how easily the province backline cut through our centres. although neither meisiekind or pretorius are in the same league as jacque fourie. ludik in the team will also make a huge difference.
oh and happy you are getting old day for yesterday.
@rugbypedia (Comment 12) : whatever floats your boat…
The game against the Bulls will be tough. We have beaten them before and we can beat them again. It all depends on the day and how the team performs together as a unit.
@Tascha (Comment 1) : Hey Tascha!!! Good 2 c u here!! Thanks for the support, KP was good to you!! 😉
GO SHARKS!!
Shit! My heart is pounding typing this!!!
@bloubulblog (Comment 17) :
Well I am of course assuming that if there is a blue bull, it stands to reason that he would have blue balls.
@wpw (Comment 7) : They might be but we have beaten them at home and away this year and they were both quite convincing victories.
interesting to see how the teams are throwing the favourites tag back and forth.
sharks have had a great season, bulls have had a kak one. game is at kings park. sharks have beaten bulls something like 5 games in a row at kings park.
bulls have the stats for knockout games, and the experience.
all in all, it boils down to 80 mins on saturday. whatever we say don’t really have that big an effect on the result, and i don’t think either of the teams will be caught up in the “you’re the favourite” game.
80 mins of klipharde rugby will decide this one. i hope it doesn’t boil down to one bounce of the ball or an intercept or something like that, but it just might…
I’m more than 100% behind our guys…GO SHARKS…my blood is black!!!! And I would like to wish Ryan a BIG Happy Birthday for today.
but lets be honest with ourselves here, the sharks haven’t shown the backbone you expect of their supporters. the sharks have a chokers tag, and deservedly so. i think fans have adopted a wait and see attitude as they are sick of having their hopes dashed. i feel the sharks have more than enough firepower to walk over the bulls, but they were as powerful last year and the cheetahs ate them for dinner. i will however be hoping for a victory like every other sharks fan on this site.
@try time (Comment 24) : the mistake of last year was playing the Boks cold in the semi it wont happen this year
oh and if it is any consolation rob, there are 61 people on the site at the moment. way more than normal. this is a sign sharks fans are excited and hopeful.
@Richard Ferguson (Comment 9) :
My comment was tongue in cheek mate!! 😉
@Fattmann (Comment 25) : they weren’t cold. they had as much if not more game time than this years boks do. but the boks were exhausted, whereas this years boks have been rested.
great words
@lostfish (Comment 21) :
They beat you at Loftus, remember?? 😈
@Ice (Comment 19) :doh! if it wasn’t pounding you would be dead and you couldn’t type.
Let the media write us off. Call us underdogs. That’s how we like it. I guess we fluked top of the log. I guess booking our home semi nearly a month ago was a fluke too. I suppose scoring the most bonus points out of all the teams and playing some of the most dazzling rugby seen in many a season was a complete freak of nature. That’s right: judge us on our last game. A game that held very little motivation for us. Go on WP supporters write us off, we dare you. Sharks Forever!
@wpw (Comment 27) :
So was mine uncle..
I don’t read each comment on this site but most of the negativity towards the Sharks seems to stem from the articles on the rugby sites (this one being the exception) and comments from the rugby journalists in my opinion. Both the Bulls and Sharks fans I’ve come across seem to be uncertain about this encounter and living in Pretoria, I know a lot of Bull’s fans. 🙂
Those who feel the breath of sadness
Sit down next to me
Those who find they’re touched by madness
Sit down next to me
Those who find themselves ridiculous
Sit down next to me
Love, in fear, in hate, in tears
Down
Down
Oh sit down
Sit down next to me
Sit down, down, down, down, down
In sympathy
I’m feeling very confident about this weekend…the Sharks have won 6 out of our last 7 games against the bulls in Durban. We have been playing the better rugby this year and we have NOTHING to fear from them!!
There has been very little ‘chatter’ from the Sharks camp this week, and most coming out of PTA or their supporters rather, and I prefer it that way, focus on the game…and came Monday I’ll be able to tell some bulls were to stick that humble pie they have to eat 🙂
GO DIE HAAI!!
I Agree, everyone I talk to predict a final on Newlands and then the Bulls to take it. I’m also starting to get a little fed up and the smallest of doubts I might have had is now gone.
By the way Rob, do you think it is too late for a letter to the boys from all of us?
@try time (Comment 28) : they came into the semi cold not having played in the cc before then that is what I meant
@wpw (Comment 30) : I was talking about the Cheetahs
@try time (Comment 31) : I am a heartless biets normally…there is a major diffs between beating and pounding mofo! 😉
@Rob : WOW! Good on you mate. MAybe this is exactly what we as Shark supporters need to do. Get out of our shells, and Stand up and Fight. Because as soon as they (Bulls) have something to say, we climb into our little holes.
There is no where in HELL the Bulls are going to take this one
HI ALL
PLEASE START THINKING OF MEASSAGES OF MOTIVATION AND ENCOURAGEMENT TO THE SHARKS. WE WILL BE POSTING A THREAD SHORTLY TO GET YOUR MESSAGES ON AND WE WILL GET IT TO THE SHARKS BEFORE THE GAME TOMORROW.
@vanmartin (Comment 34) : Too true – and then us Bulls fans get blamed for it. Of course we stand by our team, and we’ll talk them up, but any true supporter knows than anything can happen on Sat 😯
@Farlington (Comment 37) : Oh be sure to use my quotes in that letter to the players! 😈
Bulls will win it! Why? Because:
1. We are chokers
2. Our Boks are back
3. It’s the Bulls
4. Because I want the Sharks to win and I dont get what I want.
@Richard Ferguson (Comment 9) : We did the same last year remember, and what happened in the Semi?
@Jarson (Comment 46) :
Be positive dude.. Jeez.. Its a home game and the Sharks havent lost at home this season..
@Jarson (Comment 46) : Good grief, dude. Grow some cahoolies!
@Jarson (Comment 47) :
I wasnt involved last year.. And Im lucky..
If any Sharks players are reading this: Proof me wrong Chokers!
I will stand up and fight for my team 2 the death!!!! Our boys are DYNAMITE!!!!!!
Go boys!!!!
Bulls are a good side. They will be hard to beat. And I was concerned by the lack of back line imagination from the Sharks last week. But still, I don’t believe the Bulls have more imagination than the Sharks. WP were a real threat on that. But I can’t see the Bulls running at the Sharks from all over the park. The have the brawn, they just lack the brain.
No doubt in my mind that it will be a Sharks-WP final. My picks are both teams with 5 on SB.
I don’t know if I am missing something but what’s with all this arrogance and hype regarding the Bulls team? Ludik v Kirchner = no contest. Mvovo & Ndungane v Vd Heever & vd Westhuizen = JACO VD WESTHUIZEN YOUR BEST WING FOR A FINALS GAME??????. Centres: I know we not strong but Meisiekind & Pretorius are no world beaters either. Two halfbacks can be even depending on type of game being played. Kankowski, Alberts, Keegan/Botes v Danie, Potgieter & Kuun = Sharks ALL the way. Beast, Bissie, Jannie v Werner, Chillie & Dean = Come on! Is all the Blue confidence based on their two locks??? What am I missing??????
If we play our best and they also do,we will win!!!!!!!!!
I have said this many times before the bulls are the luckiest sobs on the planet,with decisions going there way etc.we must be 8 points ahead final seconds.
@Jarson (Comment 51) : reverse psychology… gimme a break! 🙂
Sharks team was named.
The Sharks
15. Louis Ludik
14. JP Pietersen
13. Stefan Terblanche (Captain)
12. Andries Strauss
11. Lwazi Mvovo
10. Patrick Lambie
9. Charl McLeod
8. Ryan Kankowski
7. Willem Alberts
6. Keegan Daniel
5. Alistair Hargreaves
4. Steven Sykes
3. Jannie du Plessis
2. Bismarck du Plessis
1.Tendai Mtawarira
Replacements
16. Craig Burden
17. Eugene van Staden
18. Anton Bresler
19. Jacques Botes
20. Rory Kockott
21. Andre Pretorius
22. Odwa Ndungane
@Tackler (Comment 55) : Yes, the Bulls’ confidence is built on their 2 locks. Add Bakkies and Victoria and everybody north of the Jukskei instantly grows 10kgs of muscle.
I am not arrogant but quietly confident that the Sharks will win this game. It will not be easy and the scores will be close but I believe my boys can do it.
Eish! Keegs at 6!!??
@Fattmann (Comment 38) : no they were available two games before the semi.
@MysticShark (Comment 59) :
Go Sykes and Al!!! You can DO IT!!
Rob.
To answer you opening question for this article…… YES…… Until our team was announced and then I realised we ain’t just going to give these guys a run for their money we are going to take it off them!!!!
SHARKS!!!!!!
@KSA Shark © (Comment 64) : yes please! You been out boating all day?
@KSA Shark © (Comment 64) : I like the way you are thinking!!
@robdylan (Comment 65) :
No I’m flippen working 12hour days again. 🙁 06:30 to 18:30.
Should finish on Sunday. helps me F^&* All coz the games are on Saturday. 😳
@KSA Shark © (Comment 67) :
I hope you get your message on the Good luck thread.. If not, email me..