The Cell C Sharks kick off their French challenge against European Rugby Champions, RC Toulonnais, at the Stade Mayol in Toulon tonight.
The match will be live on SS1 from 21:30.
Toulon:
15 Delon Armitage 14 James O’Connor 13 Theo Belan 12 Rousset 11 Bryan Habana (c) 10 Frederic Michalak 9 Jonathan Pélissié 8 Charles Ollivon 7 Gregory Annetta 6 Samu Manoa 5 Konstantin Mikautadze 4 Thibault Lassalle 3 Matt Stevens 2 Jean-Charles Orioli 1 Alexandre Menini
Substitutes:
16 Badri Alkhazashvili 17 Thomas Vernet 18 Andrew Cramond 19 George Stokes 20 Kylian Jaminet 21 Ulupano ‘UJ’ Seuteni 22 Anthony Meric 23 Manasa Saulo
Sharks:
15 Joe Pietersen 14 Lwazi Mvovo 13 Paul Jordaan 12 Andre Esterhuizen 11 Odwa Ndungane 10 Patrick Lambie (c) 9 Cobus Reinach 8 Daniel du Preez 7 Jean-Luc du Preez 6 Francois Kleinhans 5 Ruan Botha 4 Etienne Oosthuizen 3 Coenie Oosthuizen 2 Kyle Cooper 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Substitutes:
16 Franco Marais 17 Juan Schoeman 18 Lourens Adriaanse 19 Giant Mtayanda 20 Dave McDuling 21 Hyron Andrews 22 Stefan Ungerer 23 Michael Claassens 24 Garth April 25 Heimar Williams 26 Johan Deysel 27 Wandile Mjekevu 28 S’bura Sithole
Tweet
Matt Stevens… lets see if he is any better in a different team
Craft beer…check…
Wife and children warned that DSTV will be hogged…check…
Excitement…check…
Let’s get cracking!
can the sharks use all the players on the bech or only 8 (including 3 front-row)?
Am I excited for some Sharks rugby!
I should probably reel in my excitement and not expect too much….
@50shadesofshark (Comment 3) : Pre-season games normally has rolling subs…probably due to match fitness issues.
@FireTheLooser (Comment 5) : ok so we might see all 28 players vs toulon.perhaps even an almost new team for the 2nd half?the win will be good,but it is about game time for the players and getting the training field practice right in a match situation.
@50shadesofshark (Comment 3) : I think they can use all of them…
@FireTheLooser (Comment 4) : I’m thinking just about the same…but I am very excited to be able to watch the Sharks play again!!
Other warm up results so far:
Stormers 45-15 SWD
Force 28-0 Canes (an impressive result, Force were down to 13 men at one stage)
Blues 59-7 Rebels (9 tries to 1, all tries scored by different players)
Tick tock…less than an hour to go…
Southern Kings 22 – 16 SWD
@pierre_mackie (Comment 11) : Final score?
Has anyone got a stream for the game not on sky sports
@durbsguy (Comment 13) : Kodi sportsdevil…
@pierre_mackie (Comment 11) : If it is the final score, that’s not great for the Kings…
@durbsguy (Comment 13) : Or cricfree.tv
Thank you Sir
Let’s do this
@vanmartin (Comment 18) : Come on!
It seems not even ladies can make golf interesting. Wrap it up gals.
Please keep us updated on how the game goes
@vanmartin (Comment 20) : I was thinking the exact same thing…
@CrazySharkFan (Comment 21) : Will do…
Go Sharks!!!!!
Here we go…
@pastorshark (Comment 23) : Thanks
It looks like a fair crowd in…
In what kit are we playing
@CrazySharkFan (Comment 26) : Sure… 😆
Much better conditions than last year. Hopefully some running rugby.
@CrazySharkFan (Comment 28) : They’re not on the field yet…
Sound not great on my side, picture is fine though
PS the game is being recorded for anyone who misses it.
We warmed up in our white practice jerseys it seems…
Here comes the band…
@vanmartin (Comment 32) : So sound is crackly
@Seth101 (Comment 33) : Good work…
@Seth101 (Comment 36) : Yup
@Seth101 (Comment 33) : By your friend, I mean…
And now time for the marching band to rock out
Sharks in white, Toulon in black…
Rugby!
@pastorshark (Comment 39) : Will pass it on, just praying to the the Telkom over lords that the Internet survives 😀
Not the Super rugby jerseys…
Sharks are playing in a really cool looking white kit
So th camera work is INCREDIBLY shoddy…
@pastorshark (Comment 44) : Actually kind of like that, keep then for the real thing.
Sound problems, picture problems…anthems being sung but we can’t hear a thing!
Sound has disappeared altogether now
Anthems, is this a Test? 😀
@Seth101 (Comment 47) : Yeah…
Supersport apologising…ah, there’s the sound…
@Seth101 (Comment 50) : It’s testing my patience. Don’t know if that counts though.
Habana singing the SA anthem cheeky ????
Why aren’t Habana and Stephens singing the French anthem?! 😀
Stephens grinning like a clown…
@vanmartin (Comment 53) : It’s better than the nothing we were going to get…..
“A stirring rendition of the national anthem” according to commentators. Didn’t hear a single note but I trust them.
What is this clown doing?
Woah…some shouting Frenchman! Did he just insult Lambie?!
Lambie to kick off. Let’s do this!
Sharks kick off…
Some French loony stole a mic.
We need that at KP 😀
Sharks penalised at the first breakdown…
French pilfer at the first ruck.
I hope both teams don’t go for polls to much.
Very good first defensive showing
Toulon attack and after a few turnovers either way, the Sharks knock it on as Mvovo goes for an intercept…
Kleinhans gets some attention…and is off…
Oh no! First injury. Kleinhans off with what looked like a knee bending backwards
@pastorshark (Comment 70) : Guessing he can come back since it’s a friendly…
Oh dear, Kleynhans only lasts a couple of minutes…and Giant is on…that has to be disruptive…no fetcher now…
Losing guys so early, not good.
Nice turnover by the Sharks in the tackle and Lambie brings relief…
@Seth101 (Comment 72) : I hope so…
Great defence.
Oosthuisen to flank
Tackling the ball
Forward pass by Toulon…very scrappy so far…welcome to warm up games!
Damn, really wanted to see Kleinhans at 6 and Oosthuizen at 4…
Scrum goes straight down…
Free kick to Toulon…
Hey there, any link for an SA expat in the USA? I’m a rugby-starved Sharks fanatic. Please hook a brother up!
Studs slipping for the whole front row.
Good aggressive Sharks defence…
Good break!
Lovely counter by the Sharks…Mvovo and Jordaan interlinking until an inside pass by Jordaan hits a Toulon player and goes out…
We win our first lineout easily…Botha…
Good yards gained by some of the forwards, especially du Preez…but we end up losing the ball after a few phases…
Nice box kick by Reinach and Sharks put pressure on…penalty Sharks…
Jordaan lost the ball in the tackle earlier…that is always the concern with him…
Lambie will take a shot…
It is from wide out and he pulls it…
Reinach passing from the base every now and then which is a sight for sore eyes
Well the French don’t mind booing it seems.
Botha very strong on his feet…Habana half charges down the kick but it goes into touch…
Cooper is at least finding his jumpers…that’s a good start…
Booing in a friendly? Did they not get the memo…
Lovely run by Coenie! Great stuff…I’m going to like him as a Shark…
Some good play by the Sharks through the phases with some good handling…until a Reinach offload is low and goes to ground…
Dare I say the Sharks might almost know how to play rugby again.
Nice strong scrum by the Sharks…our forwards are looking good…
Toulon take a quick tap after they were under all sorts of pressure…
Toulon slowing down a lot of our rucks. We need an aggro cleaner.
0-0 after almost 15 minutes…
Very very good wide defense by the Sharks.
@Seth101 (Comment 102) : Quite a bit that is looking good…very little kicking some nice running and some impressive play by the forwards…
Do the broadcasters know what Mvovo looks like…
We seem to employing a rush defense of sort. Toulon not looking comfortable on attack.
@Hulk (Comment 109) : Doubt it
@Seth101 (Comment 107) : I fear we will miss Kleinhans when it comes to speed to the breakdown…
Sharks will have a scrum on the 22..
It’s been confirmed, the commentators have our two wings mixed up.
Did the commentator just say that Odwa was very quick…?! 😯 😆
I’m seeing an immediate improvement on attack, defence, intensity, rucking. Thank you Robert du Preez and “Maimane”. We can definitely build from this. This guys were coached during the off season.
We are penalised at scrum-time…?
@GreatSharksays (Comment 116) : Definitely…
@pastorshark (Comment 112) : For this game possible greater scheme of things he’s back up to Marcel and Keegan.
Scrums a big mess. Neither the players nor the ref know what’s going on.
Lineout stolen by the Sharks…
Try Reinach!
Ref trying to explain to Coenie why he was penalised. Couldn’t make out what he said.
What a try!!! Great handling, great run by du Preez and Reinach scores…
Scary try but good non the less
Just a brilliant little break by Esterhuizen and a great offload out of the back of the hand to du Preez made it….
@pastorshark (Comment 124) : Lovely try. Great timing by Esterhuizen. Great offload.
Lambie pulls it again…hmm…should have got that one!
@Seth101 (Comment 125) : Scrapy
5-0 after 20 minutes…
Great hands. Lambie please find your line.
Looks very good so far for early in the season
@Seth101 (Comment 129) : The middle bit was scrappy…but once we got the ball on their 22 the play was really good!
They are muddling our wings because Ndungane was listed at 11 but is playing 14…and Mvovo listed as 14 but playing 11…
So right of the bat, there’s some structure in our defense and patience on attack. Good omens so far.
Sharks kick a penalty deep into the 22…
The maul was collapsed and after a few phases of advantage we get the penalty…
I suspect a twelve year old is manning the sound desk.
Kick to the corner…
We got the lineout but then knocked it while setting the maul…pity…
@vanmartin (Comment 138) : And the 12 year old’s younger siblings are behind the cameras…
Coenie penalised in the scrum again…
@pastorshark (Comment 140) : Throw in was crisp though. Silver lining.
I’m all smiles. Only saw Cobus double step once before making a pass and we are a quarter into the game. I am chuffed. Seems like tighthead is going to be an issue.
@vanmartin (Comment 143) : Cooper’s throws have been much better…seems his horrible year is a thing of the past…
Coenie’s knee was on the ground pretty much from the first French shove.
Great by Reinach off a quick tap…it breaks down in the back though…
@pastorshark (Comment 145) : Jumping has been good top, offensive and defensive
This time Lambie makes the break…but the ball is lost in the tackle…
@pastorshark (Comment 140) : That didn’t go forward to me…
Twins linking nicely with the backline. Oosthuizen not terrible at flank so far.
Oosthuizen did very well a couple of minutes ago to stop the mall and earn a penalty…
There is a bit of pre-season rust – especially with Lambie – but there is much that bodes very well for the season.
Bit of a worry with Reinach’s neck. Physio checking him out.
Coenie has been good in a few scrums, poor in some and really good in broken play…
Flip….this is what I’ve been dreaming of. Not concerned about mistakes at this stage. The intent of the boys is awesome. Thank you thank you thank you. We are on the right direction.
This time the Sharks get a free kick…
@pastorshark (Comment 155) : Really hope he picks up some confidence in the scrums.
The du Preezs are monsters!! Great stuff. Esterhuizen has also been quite good…won that up and under well…
Another penalty to the Sharks and they are back in the 22…
@pastorshark (Comment 159) : Both have been attacking and defending like machines.
Commentator: On the balance of play Toulon have done well to be only 5 points down…
@GreatSharksays (Comment 156) : Yup, well put
Another good lineout…Toulon slowing our ball down…
Reinach is much better at the base today!
@GreatSharksays (Comment 156) : Absolutely!
Beautiful break and try by Jordaan! Great build-up.
Another good try…Jordaan!! Great little ball by Lambie…
Toulon defending well.
Am I allowed to get excited yet?!
That us the kind of thing I want to see!!!!
But we’re once again patient on attack.
Nice patience there. Lambie adds the extras…and it is 12-0 after 32 mins…
Good piece of play.
My biggest regret to this point is that Kleinhans had to leave the field so early. I really wanted to see him…and Oosthuizen at 4…
Let’s see if we can get a theoretical new bonus point.
@pastorshark (Comment 175) : At least giant has been good.
@pastorshark (Comment 170) : That sort of composure and decision making this early in the season? How much praying did you do in the off-season Pastor?
That will be yellow
Sharks almost score again…surely that is a yellow for professional foul…yes, there it is…yellow! Cynical on the line…
That should have been a penalty try…
@vanmartin (Comment 178) :
I don’t give away trade secrets!
Repeated infringements by Toulon..another penalty! And kick to the corner…
Nice commitment by Lambie to fall on that ball…strong drive…and du Preez scores!!!
Try no 3 to Dan Du Preez
It’s not all clinical but damn this is great to watch. Momentum has totally swung our way for the time being at least.
Carved through them like butter.
Ladies and gents…sjoe, much to be positive about! Not least of which the fact that the Hound was very right about these twins! Add Marcell to the mix and that combo could be magic!
I love seeing beast make meters
Are you guys seeing this? Guys are looking for the space, creating doubt in the defence and giving the ball carrier options. All of this is happening at pace. Wow!
Lambie injured…oh dear! He is clutching his arm…that could be a disaster!!
Methinks the floodgates will open and the game will fall apart. And wih that seems Lambie is off clutching his arm.
Somewhere a Hound is howling with happiness.
No lambing no.
Flip, Lambie is injured.
That does not look good for Lambie…
Sounds real good so far
Don’t be seriously injured Pat. Please.
By the way, Pietersen missed the kick and the score is 17-0 after 39 minutes..
One of the du Preez twins really did well to stop that maul! Oosthuizen penalised…
Lol has anyone picked up that the commentators are confused with mvovo and ntugane? Now that’s funny
Sethsdradamus predicts Mondays article “Lambis injury, not as serious as it looked”. I hope….
Lambie. . . . no…!!
Great defence of that maul…that was a try for all money…
@duncanbetteridge (Comment 201) : Yea, annoying.
I’m loving what I’m seeing on defence…great stuff!
Halftime 17-0, three tries to nil…good stuff!
Great defence on half-time, keeping them out and defending them all the way back to the 22, and then straling the ball. Pity there was a knock. Half-time.
Looks like a fracture for Lambie
@Seth101 (Comment 202) : I surely hope so…but that did not look good!
This game is being played hard! Which is scary for the short of game time sharks bodies.
Jeez, this shiny new defense of ours is leaving me with a huge grin on my face as the halftime whistle blows.
@JustPlainSHARK (Comment 209) : Speculation or do you have a man on the inside?
In the words of GreatSharksays: these boys have been coached during the off season! Yay!!
Ruck collapsed on him. Pray it’s not serious.
That advert….
I am concerned about Pat. He looked distressed. Pray to the rugby gods it’s not serious.
@JustPlainSHARK (Comment 209) : How did you come to that conclusion?
@vanmartin (Comment 212) : So Moumeinme (or however you spell it) has certainly earned his salary so far!!
Rob, please keep us posted with regards to Lambie.
Interms of all the serious options I’d take fracture over rotatorcuff of his bicep again….
I think we are seeing the signs that Rob du Preez is involved. This is a pretty weak Toulon team, though.
As I drink my craft beer, what I’ve seen of basics, game plan, lineouts, defence and use of space makes it taste VEEERY good. Of course, thinking of Lambie makes me want to cry…
@pastorshark (Comment 219) : So has du Preez Snr.
Hoping and praying that Lambie’s injury isn’t serious.
@Ben (Comment 222) : It was a pretty weak Toulon side last season and we certainly didn’t look nearly as well coached as we do at the moment…
I’m with u oaks on Lambie hope he is ok maybe just maybe it’s fake.So that the other yes teams think we lost Lambie
@Ben (Comment 222) : They have done some attacking though, everything we have heald out.
You can say what you want, but the coaching changes that were made in off season has made a huge impact!! Some really good things in that 1st half and unfortunately the 2 injuries 🙁 , Lambie’s doesn’t look too good 😥
@Seth101 (Comment 224) : Absolutely!
@pastorshark (Comment 188) : and add rob du preez ,jr in there?think the sharks should target that signing.
@duncanbetteridge (Comment 227) : Wishful thinking…
Have we seen the death of “aimless kick and pray”.
Sharks playing rugby on attack and defense – good to see Rob du Preez next to Gold, clearly showing the coaching hierarchy (and it’s visible in what’s hapening on the field)
Did anyone see who came on for Lambie?
@pastorshark (Comment 234) : Think it was april
@50shadesofshark (Comment 231) : Yeah…
@pastorshark (Comment 234) : Garth April
@pastorshark (Comment 234) : Garth April
@Seth101 (Comment 235) : I thought it might be…
Garth april on for Lambie
Lambie was brave to go for that ball on the ground…got it…but in what followed was injured…I kind of wish he hadn’t been brave!
Just replayed Lambie’s injury. It happened when he dove on that loose ball. Looked more like he pegged his elbow in the ground, so maybe not that serious.
It seems it was April…
@FireTheLooser (Comment 233) : “Have we seen the death of “aimless kick and pray”.”
I certainly hope so!
Reinachs box kicking is much less aimless.
Seems that Pietersen is at flyhalf and April at fullback…
@Seth101 (Comment 245) : Definitely…we are getting to compete just about all the kicks…
Much better scrum Oosthuizen and Sharks! And they get the penalty. Yeah!!
Much better scrum that from Coenie.
is it still on? Score?
@robdylan (Comment 250) : 17-0 43 mins
@robdylan (Comment 250) : 17/0 to us!
Cooper’s first real mistake as the first lineout of the half is not fed straight! Concentrate!!
This time Coenie gets crunched…again: concentrate!!
Our defence of the maul has been good…powerful and organised…
@pastorshark (Comment 253) : Most of his throw ins have been wobbly. He needs to work hard at it.
Just showed a different angle on Lambie’s injury. Definitely pegged his elbow.
Well done Odwa…
Wonderful try by the other du Preez…
Just why I was never really ecstatic about the signing of Connie Oosthuizen, he is a walking penalty on the park, costing us a lot at scrum time
Boom!
Break by Pietersen, good handling and April puts du Preez in…
Whats evident is this ref knows less about scrumming than coenie oosthuisen
April looks like he has picked up several kgs…
Great try JL! Great run-back from the 22, some iffy passes, great break by Joe P who sends April away and the final defender beaten by the pass.
anyone got a stream link?
On a lighter note can we petition for the du Preez boys to have different haircuts, that way we can tell them apart at sight.
24-0 after 47 minutes…
Joe slots the conversion, 24-0 48 mins
Franco Marais on for Kyle Cooper.
Remember when the Sharks could make something from nothing? Damn that was a nostalgic try for me.
Yeah Lambie might be ok maybe just a knock on his elbow
Another good run, this time by Jordaan…but a lack of patience and a knock on brings that to a halt!
@duncanbetteridge (Comment 272) : Please? please, please, please…
Rob try kofi I see there is a new add on for all sports
Kodi
@robdylan (Comment 266) : Have got it all recorded so farn
Jordaan looking threatening
Good scrambling defence by the Sharks there as Toulon break…
Attacking maiul for Toulon…and this time they score..
Hope they do not get too loose now. Danger signs. Need to focus on keeping structures.
@duncanbetteridge (Comment 272) : I’m praying that it’s not serious.
The twins have been brilliant, then Toulon scores a try, eish
Jordaan is looking like his old self but I do sense a bit of not so much confidence
@pastorshark (Comment 279) : Glad we’re being kept honest at times at least
@T-Shark (Comment 281) : Yeah, focus…there have been a few examples of poor concentration in the second half…
Surely that try was the definition of changing lanes
The conversion is good and it is 24-7 after 52 minutes…
twice now a toulon forward has picked up and run through the sharks from the ruck.
Sharks got the kick off but then lost it again…
@byron (Comment 287) : I thought so too..
@byron (Comment 287) : Definitely…how do the rules work on that this season?
Sharks defense still putting plenty of pressure on Toulon
Focus boys
Toulon have their tails up and we are going to get a yellow now…Oosthuizen off…
😯
Toulon score another off the driving maul…hmm…we need to regather here. Who is our captain at the moment?
@pastorshark (Comment 295) : Good test for us
Oosthuizen discipline issues are still there.
…and as soon as we sing their praises….
Fitness is being tested now…
And the ref gave that one without knowing where the ball was
Reinach seems to ha e taken over captaincy
Oops!
We got a bit loose on about 50 minutes…need to just get back to the structure…
And in the blink of an eye it is 24-14…after 57 minutes…
After losing two lineouts in a row, we need to get this one right!
Looked at Twitter about Lambie some calling.a shoulder injury
Nice hard throw by Marais and we win that one…
@duncanbetteridge (Comment 308) : Highly doubt anyone will know yet.
I’m relieved it’s not all going our way to be honest
Marais needs some more work on his line-out throws…
April is penalised for not releasing and Toulon take it quickly…this time we win the turnover penalty though…
Sharks back in the Toulon 22…time to win another lineout!
Hyron on for Ruan Botha…
Andrews is a tall fellow.
Either a poor throw or miscommunication because the wrong man jumped but that was a shambles!
Ruan Botha limping a bit?
And they still calling ntugane novo o deer
Toulon knock it and we have a scrum on the 22 in the middle of the field…
Autocorrect mvovo
@vanmartin (Comment 318) : Didn’t see anything
Esterhuzien with a srtong run but we are penalised at the breakdown again! Sigh…
Its good to see yhat there is a definite shift from taking contact to drawing a man and passing. And that was side entry ref.
@duncanbetteridge (Comment 319) : It’s because our wings are wearing the opposite numbers to what was announced on the team sheet…
@byron (Comment 324) : Very side entry…
But didn’t they watch WC?lol
Jeepers these commentators are a bit irritating: Should they be saying “we” every time they talk about Toulon?
@pastorshark (Comment 328) : Also been annoying me.
@pastorshark (Comment 328) : Was wondering the same thing
I love the fact that we are playing towards space so much…
Nice to watch some rugby but geez these french refs are making the ozzie refs look good
Was that Kleinhans being bandaged up?
Lovely try by Mvovo! That was really good…
Try time ntugane(mvovo)
Nice set move…and Mvovo just shoves o ‘Connor out of the way. Lovely!
Nice try for Mvovo (not Ndugane) from a set piece. Drawing defenders, Mvovo still had to beat two on the inside.
Lovely try from ‘Ndugane’
Now I want to see our replacement props get some time…and Claassens…
It.was Kleinhans
@pastorshark (Comment 334) : You mean ndungane?;)
We have missed four kicks at poles, tough! Apparently some practice is still required there!
@pastorshark (Comment 336) : That change of pace meant he could simply help o Conner along on his way to score 🙂
29-14 after 65 minutes…
@vanmartin (Comment 343) :
I enjoyed that…
Except for those two mauls our defence has been really good!!
@Seth101 (Comment 341) : We’re typing it the way they pronounce it 😉
ANOTHER lineout not straight…so that does still need some work!
Ungerer on…
Kobus off Stefan on
Quite a few of our guys are getting through 70+ minutes well…fitness doesn’t seem to be a major issue…
Our defence has remained pretty good throughout…
Young oaks are really looking good same goes for Joe
Loving our defense. Toulon are struggling.
Pietersen has had a very decent game…
@vanmartin (Comment 354) : Yup…
April has been quite disappointing
I’m not a fan of french refs in general…
@pastorshark (Comment 355) : Cool head on that guy.
Just woke up, found a dodgy stream within 2minutes. So good to see the boys back in action! Go sharks
Paul off, Heimar on. Deysel on at flank
@byron (Comment 357) : He looks a little over eager.
@pastorshark (Comment 358) : Haven’t thought thus guy has been bad at all, maybe a little whistle happy both ways but not bad!
Deysel on and Heimar
Pretty much all the subs on…and our defence still holds…
29-14 after 72 minutes…
Props changed…
Deysel on and Heimar and schoeman and adriaanse
Refs slightly better than the commentators
@T-Shark (Comment 361) : Deysel is a center, commentators are dumb.
Penalty try to Toulon off the driving maul…does the whole changing lane rule still exist?
Ok I am struggling to understand some of this refs calls 😕
So we obviously need to work on defending the rolling maul….
So 29-21 after 74 minutes…
Not to come off as bitter but I really hate the rolling maul.
Here comes the rest sups sithole and mjeveko
@vanmartin (Comment 375) : Expect to see it more with the new rules.
Have a look at how we chase the kick offs from deep…nice!
So he shouts “tackler release” when the ball is clearly way off the ground! OK…
Lovely steal by Oosthuizen…but at the next breakdown we are penalised…
@pastorshark (Comment 379) : Ball doesn’t have to touch the ground for it to be a tackle….
Now we have to defend another maul…come on boys!
Marais has been pathetic since coming on
Need to defend the rolling maul now
Better defence there…
Except for the maul in the second half, our defence has been awesome!
Just awesome defence…
Now they set another lineout and we have to face another maul…
90 seconds to go…
So the french reffing flair continues
Awesome defence now just a few concerns here and there but all is not lost not.the marais we come to know at currie cup though
Lovely passage of defense there
Why are we not allowed to compete for the ball??
even before a ruck we are told to release when the ball is in the air and the ball carrier is being held up
I’m impressed with how good our fitness looks…the du Preez boys are machines!
So how does one defend a rolling maul? Cause a penalty??
@pastorshark (Comment 387) : What I have also picked up is that the players are trusting each other on defence, not moving in but staying man on man.
Better defence at the maul again…
Even more impressive taking into account we have a brand new team on the field
Hookers is going to be a problem this season, don’t forget we only have two Snr hookers.
Brilliant defense
Oh boy that was great defence! And great commitment…we win the turnover scrum…
Seems our sups has a beter plan than the starting team too stop the maul
Big D by giant
@duncanbetteridge (Comment 402) : Our starting team stopped quite a few mauls in the first half very well…
Offside by the scrummy
@vanmartin (Comment 398) : Everybody looks very well drilled on defence…
That was a pretty solid scrum though….
One final defensive scrum…
Another very good scrum by the replacement props…
@pastorshark goes to say the second half mauls
There was some obstruction there…but it just gives us another chance to show off our defence…
FULL TIME
TOULON 21 – 29 SHARKS
That’s it…29-21!
10 great minutes of defence practice… worth more than a 29 nil win
That final kick out 🙂
Dan du Preez is my man of the match.
@duncanbetteridge (Comment 410) : Two of their second half mauls did include a major change of lanes…
@vanmartin (Comment 415) : LOL! 😆
That final kick started with ab outrageoys pass for a forward
@Ben (Comment 416) : I second that nomination…
Jeez Sharks, that was an impressive warm-up compared to last year. Think we learnt a lot and showed a lot of promise.
Game over, 29-21. Great commitment from all the players, which is a big positive. Some good inventive play. Things broke up a bit after Lambie went off. We really need him. Not too worried about a few things to work on. For a firstbgame of the season, this Sharks supporter is very happy.
@byron (Comment 414) : Agreed…
Happy enough with that…probably ended up being more entertaining than a typical warm-up.
@byron (Comment 414) : And I think it is fair to say that Mouneimne (or however you spell it) was a pretty darn good appointment…
Jordaan was pretty decent too
@T-Shark (Comment 422) : I would be interested to see how we go with Pietersen at flyhalf and Willie at fullback…
Nice to see the post-match friendliness between the two teams. Great advert for rugby.
Another positive for me is Reinach, so much better than last year.
@byron (Comment 426) : Ai, his hands still concern me. He drops some balls with no one near and almost every ball in the tackle. But when he has it in hand he is good to watch!
…and our first cup of the season…
@sharks_lover (Comment 429) : Reinach was much, much better than last season…this is a good marker for him and I hope he goes from strength to strength…
Hyron struggled but the intensity was up there so gr8 experience. Looks like a gappy team
Lambie even not at the ceremony….must be really serious.
That trophy for a warm up? 🙂
@FireTheLooser (Comment 431) : Interesting trophy…
@FireTheLooser (Comment 431) : Bigger than the user rugby one 😀
@vanmartin (Comment 435) :
Was that a happy birthday for Lourens?
@GreatSharksays (Comment 434) : Yeah, I’m worried…
@FireTheLooser (Comment 424) : Look, it exceeded my expectations…
Really excited to see some defense
@byron (Comment 442) : Absolutely…
@pastorshark (Comment 436) : Should look nice next to our conference, SR and CC trophies. ?
Biggest disappointments/concerns: the injuries to Kleinhans and Lambie…
@FireTheLooser (Comment 444) :
Biggest irritations: the commentators…
Biggest cause of enjoyment and hope for the season: the DEFENCE!!! plus the du Preez twins and the playing towards space…
Geez they were so bad
@pastorshark (Comment 448) : And really being able to see that this side has been COACHED…
@pastorshark (Comment 450) : Well done coaching team! And thank you…
@byron (Comment 449) : Really bad…
I saw a shark player drawing an attacker and anotger offloading in the tackle. I poured another drink #unbelievable
Biggest areas to work on: lineouts (the lineouts were good in the first half on own throw and that of Toulon…but pretty poor in the second), scrums (some scrums were good, some poor…let’s get some consistency on the side of good…though, to be fair, Coenie hasn’t played much for a year!)…and getting Lambie fit…
@byron (Comment 453) :
It was just lovely…
I suspect Ruan Botha may also have picked up a niggle. He did not look entirely comfortable walking off.
Best forwards:
Du Preez twins – just wow! On attack and defence…
Ruan Botha showed that he was a very good buy…and Oosthuizen was also pretty good; despite the yellow card, he put in good hits, won some good turnovers; just a pity we didn’t see him play the whole game at 4…
@vanmartin (Comment 456) : It did look that way…but didn’t look too serious (or am I being too optimistic)…
With Kleinhans injured and Terra and Majola seemingly still struggling to get fit, boy does that signing of Keegan Daniel look like a good idea!
We were short a 3rd/4th man comming into the rucks and we were caught on the counter a bit. Our back 3 were not tested at all. WE HAVE LOCKS!
Any ideas where to upload the video? busy encoding.
@byron (Comment 357) : I have a different view.
Before the accusations of “you’re reading too much into this game start coming in” let me explain our collective excitement with “we were looking for signs of improvement and we saw them fairly consistently tonight”. The rest is really just gravy for a rugby-starved audience. When Sharks fan get enthusiastic about defense in spite of tries being scored you know it’s been a good night of rugby.
pillar defence at rucks need attention.
Best backs:
– Reinach was very good…there was the odd poor pass, but generally his service was good, his kicking accurate and his danger factor always present…
– Joe was very solid…when he came to flyhalf he got into the game much more and that one break was a thing of beauty…kicking at posts needs some work…
– aaaaand…Esterhuizen actually…he was good on defence, strong in his carries, his distribution was solid and that offload in the tackle to set up the first try was great.
Fantastic game. Nice to see improvement.now hopefully injuries arent too bad
@byron (Comment 460) : We have several locks…all three of them were pretty good today. And we did miss Kleinhans – or his type of player – at the breakdown…
@vanmartin (Comment 463) : That’s it…
@Dunx (Comment 466) : Oh boy…injuries…I have the aweful feeling that Inny is going to have his introduction to Super Rugby much earlier than he might have thought…
Right, good night people…let me get some sort of rest before I hit the Mudman Triathlon tomorrow…
@pastorshark (Comment 457) : Despite that yellow Esterhuizen was pivotal at times of robbing Toulon of their attacking momentum. Think this was the first time ever I’ve seen him properly step up at flank.
@pastorshark (Comment 465) : Esterhuizen not trying to steamroll the closest player but waiting the splitsecond for the half-gap to open must surely mean someone is actually bothering to properly coach backline play. Same goes for Reinach’s passing from the base. Can’t remeber when last I saw that. I found it quite novel that Lambie got to decide to change direction leading up to the second try. A 10 in charge, how peculiar 🙂
Absolutely…I think tonight’s game was a good reflection on our coaching staff…something has happened there…
“The Sharks
43m43 minutes ago
The Sharks [email protected]
We will keep you updated with information on all injuries as soon as details are confirmed. Thank you for all the messages of support.”
@sharks_lover (Comment 393) : watched last weekend’s montpellier match and the sa players (especially bissie )seemed a bit confused by the french ref’s interpretation at the breakdown.perhaps there is a difference in officiating the breakdown as opposed to the southern hemisphere?
Even under Plum, Sharks never brought such variation as they did last night. Wow! The defence was a wall. They only scored through rolling mauls. All the guys look bigger and stronger. Well done to the new conditioning coach.
@50shadesofshark (Comment 474) : The french refs are definitely different…I am not sure whether it is about interpretation or ability or consistency. The writeup about the game on rugby365 certainly expresses some frustration about the ref last night…
@GreatSharksays (Comment 475) : It did look really good. The defence was rock solid in general play. The fitness levels looked very good too. And there was very little pointless kicking. There was one clearance kick by Joe that went down the fullback’s throat…other than that every kick in general play was contestable…
@pastorshark (Comment 477) : I am very optimistic. I couldn’t sleep I was so excited. My expectations are still under control though. Not expecting a SR title but am now hopeful of a top 8 finish. Still lots of work to be done. Any news on Lambie?
Any news on Lambie …that didn’t look good at all ?
Did you guys also notice how much variety Andre brought? Off loading in the tackle, doing the SBW, getting his arms through the tackle etc…Robert du Preez is a magician. Why didn’t we bring him on board sooner. Let’s extend his contract with immediate. Him, defence and conditioning guy. I want them to be the core of our coaching team from the next decade. Most of the headaches I had were addressed. Concern is now at tighthead prop.
@GreatSharksays (Comment 478) : @Flintshark (Comment 479) : I’ve been checking wherever I know to, but no news yet…
@GreatSharksays (Comment 480) : I hate to say it, but I told you so…
Robert du Preez doesn’t have the record he has for nothing. Yesterday created a very good impression of our coaching team! Like you say: Attack (Rob), Defence (Mouneimne) and conditioning (that ex-Kings fellow) looked really good. I thought Esterhuizen was excellent in all the areas you mentioned…plus defence. Tighthead is a concern…there were good moments by Coenie, but also plenty problems. I reckon the fact that he has played so little in the last year contributes and he will get better…but it is a concern.
Re-watching, Lambis seemed to get injured when our players hit the ruck hard and landed on him.
@Seth101 (Comment 483) : It just doesn’t look good…I’m wishing he hadn’t been that brave! It has the potential to be season ending…I’d be very chuffed if he was only out for a month…
It wasn’t a dream? 😀
@vanmartin (Comment 485) : 😆 BTW I agree with your assessment, the changes in style of play, support play running lines and option taking were just so much better than last year, much to be positive about.
https://mega.nz/#!EEow1QTa Somnone please let me know if it downloads okay. Quality had to be kept low ish to keep the size low.
@Seth101 (Comment 487) : If it asks for a key !oAGgW56PYnRC5TV3Z5Aw_2zAvGUxDfeKcA3aMJgKQBI
@pastorshark (Comment 2) : Do you know Holge Meyer ?
@Seth101 (Comment 488) : Thanks
Happy birthday Preacher man!
@robdylan (Comment 490) : Hope it’s okay.
Sharks update says Lambie has suspected AC joint injury….will be sent for tests.
@pastorshark (Comment 484) : @robdylan (Comment 491) : is it Pastors birthday? Happy Birthday if it is hope you have a wonderful day!!
Great to hear the Sharks did well!!!! Hope Lambie will be OK!!!!
@FireTheLooser (Comment 493) : Hi Looser man, lol hope you are well?? you happy with what you saw last night?
Good signs in general. At least the Sharks showing the intent to make something of every opportunity that comes their way. Some good handling, running lines and support play on attack. Apart from struggling to defend mauls close to the line, real aggressive intent on defence as well. The du Preez twins will definitely still go far, and I liked what I saw from our centres.
Tighthead and hooker still a major worry. At least Cooper looks better than last year, but he lost his way towards the end of his stint. Marais had a mare at lineout time.
Good that Toulon tested us with lineout mauls, as we still have a lot of work to do on maul defence. With the new changes to the laws on penalties after the whistle, this will become even more important.
I really hope Pat’s injury is not too serious.
Botha made such a difference to the line outs great buy. Oosthuizen is not the answer at lock or at flank.Thought Jordan and Esterhuzen looked very promising,also enjoyedJoe ‘s play.
Rein arch terrifies me,wish Gold had given Ungerer a longer run with Lambie.We are going to miss Pat,April and Reinarch are a dodgy combination.
Connie’s not the answer,nor are either of the Hookers.Does anyone know where Burden is,I thought he was with Toulon,if so why didn’t he play.
All things being equal and as it was a season opener ,very good signs all over the field.
Add Marcel,Lewies if he ever gets fit again,Claassens,J.P and Willie le Roux ,and even Gold can’t stuff that up.
@sharks_lover (Comment 496) : Am I ever…..it’s been a long time since I enjoyed a well played sharks game.
It was a thing of beauty (though far from perfect, tons of encouraging signs)
So what do we have,I am seriously suprised ,the numbers I don’t mention are seriously good as for EO wow,so 9 to 13 are rubbish the NZ teams are going to monster them but as for the rest eish I mite just be buckling up for a bumpy ride,as for 2 well Pooper he must stay at homeas well
any news re: uanivi,the lock from namibia?
@benji (Comment 501) : but as I said what a waist of time this NH rugby is not the same level as SR should have played warm up games against Aussie teams
@The hound (Comment 498) : 4 and 5 based on last nite are sorted mate,as for 12 and 13 seriously,against NZ teams really
who of heimar and johan deysel played at 13?
@The hound (Comment 499) : Burden is with Jake White at Montpelier.
@The hound (Comment 500) : playing for stade francaise at the moment.
@50shadesofshark (Comment 507) : Who? Burden?
@Ben (Comment 508) :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KY7ELmluajE
this should jog your memory,it jogged Schalk’s
@50shadesofshark (Comment 507) : @Ben (Comment 508) : yes seems he moved from Toulon to Montpellier and then to Stade Francais.
@The hound (Comment 509) : geez he really nailed him!!!!
You could just see the Pukke game being played last night. 😎
Happy how the team performed.
@JD (Comment 510) : Yeah, saw him play for Montpellier about two months ago. He’s turning into a bit of a journeyman. Hopefully Natal is his next stop. 😎
@The hound (Comment 509) : My memory doesn’t need to be jogged. I know exactly who Burden is.
@Ben (Comment 513) : yes would not mind having him back!!!! Think he did not stay at Montpellier because of JW and Bissies arrival there.
@JD (Comment 515) : Jake White lured Burden to Montpellier.
@JD (Comment 515) : @Ben (Comment 516) : Jake White arrived at Montpellier long before Bissie.
@Ben (Comment 517) : Only thing I can think of is Jake signed Burden on a short term contract as hooker cover just until Bissie arrived.
@Ben (Comment 518) : I think they call that a ‘Medical Joker’ in Europe.
@Ben (Comment 513) : Why? We have Chilli and Cooper. No need to stress about hooker. Tighthead should be your focus.
@GreatSharksays (Comment 520) : And Burden is better than both of them. When last did Chilli even play rugby?
@Zibbie (Comment 489) : Very, very well… 🙂
@Zibbie (Comment 489) : How do you know him?
@robdylan (Comment 491) : Thanks Rob! It was a splendid day…topped by the fact that I survived my triathlon…
@JD (Comment 494) : Thank you…
@JD (Comment 510) : Yup…
@GreatSharksays (Comment 520) : How about Wilco Louw? He is behind a long queue at the Stormers and is very promising…
@pastorshark (Comment 529) : don’t think the stormers will loan him to the sharks.best to wait till his contract expires.should be end of this year?frans van wyk is another young thighthead prop stuck in the que at the stormers.represented baby bok in 2015.turns 21 this year.1.89/1.90m 125/128kg.but I don’t think the stormers will agree to loan him to the sharks either.
@pastorshark (Comment 529) : imo the sharks should have a look around the clubs in france and see if there is perhaps a way to do a quick loan(or player exchange)for a tighthead prop .sure there can be some good scrummaging props found in even the french 2nd division.perhaps even one who can play tighthead prop/hooker.
@50shadesofshark (Comment 529) : If Lambie is out for a while is there any chance we can loan Freddie Michalak for a while? 😉
@50shadesofshark (Comment 529) : Adriaanse didn’t look to bad in his guest appearance the other night.
He owes us big time and he should be mended now,been off for a huge holiday.It’s payback time.
@The hound (Comment 533) : yes,agree.the tighthead position is not so much about coenie but adriaanse . this is a long sr season.would like 3 options at both prop positions.
@The hound (Comment 531) : Yup…agreed…
I’ll try and get a write-up done sometime tomorrow, but in some other pre-season news:
1. Waratahs beat Brumbies will 21-17 with a try at the death.
2. Crusaders thumped the Reds 31-3.
3. Racing beat the Highlanders in a try fest 45-38.
4. The Cheetahs beat the Bulls in a great result for them 28-10.
5. The Lions played two teams, thumping the Falcons 62-17 and the Leopards 103-0.
Some interesting results…
@pastorshark (Comment 534) : interesting results. Can’t wait for the season to start!!!