… a Super Rugby title.
Let’s be honest Sharks’ fans. We’ve been forged in the fires of Just-Didn’t-Quite-Get-There (referred to as Choke-Town in the old Elvish tongue). The year that shalt not be mentioned still causes us to involuntarily flinch. The wound may have healed but the memory of a certain cup that never quite made it into the trophy cabinet haunts us ever so often. It’s our collective phantom limb (okay, I reckon I’ve pushed this analogy to it’s limit). But we’re a special kind of crazy passionate and that’s why I love you all and come back to this site week in and week out.
You have teams that have glass-half-empty supporters, you of course have the glass-half-full crowd and then you have Sharks fans who try to constantly drop-goal the glass from inside their own 22 and sometimes manage to miraculously pull it off. I know that last sentence makes very little to no sense at all and yet somehow it still perfectly describes a Sharks supporter.
So we have a new coaching staff, some new team members and a few of the old faithfuls being welcomed back into the fold because, like us, they simply couldn’t stay away. That’s more than enough reason for the average Sharks’ fan to get a little crazy excited about our prospects for this season. Adding to the crazy anticipation is of course the fact that this is the last ‘proper’ strength-vs-strength Super Rugby competition until our SANZAR overlords are finally defeated by a brave Deon Stegmann hobbit.
So what are some realistic expectations for this season? Well, it’s the current coaches first Super Rugby season at the helm, it’s the first time we have this new coaching structure in place and Tyler Fisher has not been selected into the Super Rugby squad. Ominous omens! We’re not quite sure why but that last one seems especially troublesome. Still! We have good depth in most positions, we have Mr. Brendan Venter on our side who seems to be our kind of crazy ‘get’ us and we looked fighting fit in our Toulon match which points to a successful and positive preseason.
Having carefully taken all of the above factors into consideration and after carefully weighing up our chances I can state with complete confidence that you need to excuse me from finishing up the rest of the article – I need to go drop-kick a glass from inside my 22.

Love the tone and the humour, Van the Man. Drop some more articles whenever you have the time please!
I LIKE this special kind of
CRAZYoptimism….and I am sure that THIS will be our yearExpectations. .. bla bla bla. .. excuses. .. bla bla bla …
IT’S TIME WE WIN THIS CUP!!!!
Ns: and that goes for the cricket too….
Hi all,I have a problem, my name is Salmo, I drop kick glasses all around the garden….
Btw, Nice article. 😆
I know it’s still in the rosy light before the dawn,but hell we have potential here that we haven’t had since the days of Teich ,Lem, Jubba,
Coetzee,Bothma and Alberts, as one unit, add Bismark andthe Beast back at their best,the unlimited promise of P.S.D.T.,Lambie finally getting his groove on,,Frans Steyn running with Esterhuizen.
Then Lawazi,JPP,
Hell even Alistar Coetzee could be a winner with this squad
P.S nice writing
Oh the anticipation!
@Big Fish (Comment 1) : @Salmonoid the Subtle (Comment 6) : @The hound (Comment 8) : Thanks, was a fun one to write.
@FireTheLooser (Comment 2) : @Franshark (Comment 3) : @The hound (Comment 7) : I don’t even care about jinxing it, it’s way past due for the Sharks.
Awesome article Van 🙂
So when I drop kick my glass.. Must it be empty or full… Sorry I was a forward so kicking ain’t my thing. But we can always use the driving mall from our own 22…
I can’t believe Super Rugby is about to start.
@CrazySharkFan (Comment 12) :
The Driving Mall – didnt they buy out Pro Shop?
@gregkaos (Comment 11) : Thanks bud.
@CrazySharkFan (Comment 12) :
That’s some good writing there for someone who lives behind the boerewors curtain! Superb stuff, young man!
I gotta say though, finding the glass after last year’s DG attempts was not easy. It went far, but nowhere near where it was supposed to go
Must say Van my man my head was going in a whole different direction when I first saw the heading. Optimists for life and it looks like my daughter also read your article because one of my new glasses is broken!! 😉
Fantastic read and couldnt agree more. Here’s to a great season
Brilliant read! Thanks…
The day that rugby died…and we were singing, bye-bye… 😥
The Tyler Fisher Thing…teeheehee! 😆
@pastorshark (Comment 22) : that seems to be ass big a thing ass the end of the Mayan calendar!!!!!
@Culling Song (Comment 16) : Thank you kindly, especially the young man comment 🙂
@JD (Comment 18) : My daughter possesses that very same talent 😉
@pastorshark (Comment 20) : Thanks for reading!
@Dunx (Comment 19) : Hear, hear!
@Big Fish (Comment 14) : 😆