Defensive demons trouble Muir
3 Apr 2006
Sharks coach Dick Muir has urged his side to tighten up their defence before their next Vodacom Super 14 match against the Cats at Ellis Park.
The Sharks have a bye this weekend, which will give them time to fine-tine aspects of their game before facing the Cats on 15 April.
“We can’t be overjoyed, because we gave away four tries,†said Muir after the Reds game. “Our defence let us down. Whenever we scored, we gave away easy points. There was a bit of desperation to win and we rushed the game when we should have slowed it down at one stage.â€
The Sharks have already won three matches this season – when many expected them to finish with 13 defeats – but Muir is far from satisfied.
“We don’t have as many log points as we would have liked at this stage, but we are on target with the process we set in motion at the start of the season,” he said. “A team is only as strong as its depth, and thanks to the Wildebeest [who are top of the Vodacom Cup log], we’re looking good; but we left a lot of points out there on tour.
“This week [with the bye] affords us the opportunity to get the level of conditioning in the entire squad to where we would like it to be. We might get some of the guys without much game time to play for the Wildebeest [against the Border Bulldogs on Friday night].”
Muir said that having to play a home fixture straight after their five-match overseas tour was always going to be a big ask.
“Jetlag was a factor, but the team stuck to their guns – we wanted five points and we got them. I was encouraged that once we had the four tries, the guys still wanted to play. Fortunately we didn’t have to play catch-up rugby. It would have been hard to pull it through if we lagged behind, but I still think there was enough in the tank.â€
42 Comments
3 Apr 2006, 11:26 am
Cats to cane the Sharks!
3 Apr 2006, 11:27 am
Come on sharkies, show the rest of the country what you can do by winning all your remaining matches … especially the games against the SA teams
3 Apr 2006, 11:28 am
Grrr dis nie onmoontlik nie.
3 Apr 2006, 11:29 am
Funny one Grrrrrr!
Cats will have to try and score more than 2 tries against the Reds first!
3 Apr 2006, 11:32 am
I’m glad **** mentioned defense. I was really worried at one stage, it is just not acceptable to give them a try after we scored one.
If that is sorted out, and they can get tony to stop tackling fresh air, we’ll beat the cats, even if it’s just by a couple of points.
3 Apr 2006, 11:32 am
Although I would get no satisfaction winning against the sharks. Don’t know why but really like that team these days… Cheethas distant third followed by Boland, Falcons, Bulldogs……,……. Wp and lastly Blue Cows!!!
3 Apr 2006, 11:36 am
Sharks are going to beat most of the teams they play at home. Hopefully they wont beat the Stormers… They have been the best SA team in the S14 where performance is concerned. They beat a good reds team on Sat even though they’ve been on the road for 7/8 weeks and must have been very tired…
3 Apr 2006, 11:43 am
yip, said it from the word go, its a great sharks team but the one weakness is their centre pairing. Imagine that sharks team with some quality centers like Halstead and Snyman.
3 Apr 2006, 11:45 am
wpw is still believe that the stormers are not going to win in durbs, but i might be wrong. Please let me be right on this one.
3 Apr 2006, 11:46 am
Halstead? Not a bad player but not that creative either cab. A poor mans DWB!
3 Apr 2006, 11:47 am
sharkgirl, i am not that optimistic either. the sharks are the form SA team, i hope my team does well though. Doubt they will be we neva know…
3 Apr 2006, 11:47 am
Bradley didn’t do to bad on centre, i still think **** should give rees a go on centre along with brad.
3 Apr 2006, 11:48 am
Halstead is good but only when you have a tight game and he is definitely good when playing on the heavier fields up north ie: Northern hemisphere.
3 Apr 2006, 11:48 am
wpw…
dwb has been found wanting, he has had his time, halstead is playing some good rugby up north now, he doesn’t deserve to be called the poor mans dwb, at least the sharks don’t have the gas man
3 Apr 2006, 11:49 am
We’ll never know until after the game on may 6, you are right there wpw.
3 Apr 2006, 11:49 am
Or Jorrie
3 Apr 2006, 11:50 am
cab.Stm is giving you a mnetion on the North vs South thread.see for yourself.
3 Apr 2006, 11:54 am
wpw, thats precisely what they need at 12, a halstead or DWB especially with the playmaker Brown at 10.
Look at how the sharks suffered when Halstead left last year. Still maintain Sauwerby and Halstead were superb players. If those 2 were still in the squad and an outside centre like Snyman or Fourie at 13, they could have gone all the way.
3 Apr 2006, 11:56 am
Cab
Both players left because of the coaching and the Bok set up – they were looking after their own interests … hopefully with the new set up the players who left will return and help bring the youngsters through (as Mallet has suggested in his article)
3 Apr 2006, 12:00 pm
cab…
if putt had let sowerby recover from his injuries instead of playing him with niggles and strains all the time he might have shown some of the talent he is showing now at stade instead of the carthorse he was playing like for the sharks
3 Apr 2006, 12:01 pm
Wpwee DwB is the poor man’s DwB,
I thought that Pissey was totally of the boil replace him with that youngster immediatly.
Sharks are overdoing the drive near the rucks, while everyone is screaming at the Bulls. Cheetas were killed by NSW yet reports say the Cheetas were brave. Strompies won the team that’s last on the log, everyone applauds them. Interesting times…..
3 Apr 2006, 12:08 pm
cubi – perhaps but it certainly wasn’t in SA’s interests, should have made them a better offer, pity **** Muir only came in when he did, remember they left under Putt who really did seem to stuff up the sharks badly in retrospect.
ebay – sorry mate, disagree, sowerby was always very committed in an otherwise underperforming sharks side at the time, just he got the blame as well unecessarily. Imagine 6. Britz/Botes 7. AJ and 8. Sowerby. Thats a test level backrow.
3 Apr 2006, 12:16 pm
I said 2 weeks ago Sharkies should learn to tackle
Tries against , games lost/played
Bulls 16 3/7
Cheetas 17 3/7
Strompies 16 4/7
Cats 24 6/7
Sharkies 22 5/8
Force is last on log they conceded 24 tries almost the same as Sharkies. Its of no use to score tries if the opposition scores more tries. 63% losing rate is also no good , I am not happy with Bulls either at the moment none of our teams deserve a spot in the top 4 ( I know the Strompies think they deserve the S14 cup)
3 Apr 2006, 12:46 pm
How about tries scored in the s14 by sa teams this year.
Sharks – 21
Bulls – 15
Stormers – 14
Cheetahs – 11
Cats – 6
3 Apr 2006, 12:57 pm
Here is a little conundrum for this Cats supporter…
Never die Cats? Or national pride…
Grr… Help boet!
(BTW Cats to win S14!)
3 Apr 2006, 13:00 pm
RedCard – i think you are right!
The Cats will win the SUper 14 … that will now be the bottom half of the log of the super 14!
3 Apr 2006, 13:04 pm
Fellow muppets , I want to share , what in my opinion epitomizes the following lyrics , known only to true men and women , who are the cornerstone of what makes Natal rugby wholesome . The lyrics out of one stanza in our Natal rugby anthem go like this
“Over misty valleys , through the hills of green ;
Hear the call resounding , echoing our dreams ;
With courage as our armour and honour as our guide ;
Always and forever , advancing forth with pride .
These righteous pursuits and ideals are borne out in an article written by Ashley Smith , the Chairman of the Western Cape chapter of Natal Sharks Rugby Supporters , which by the way is a world wide movement today . Ashley , in tribute to the people of Natal Rugby , no matter where they find themselves today , wrote :
“During the gloomy days when the then Natal rugby team battled away in the B section of the Currie Cup , their loyal supporters turned out in numbers to defy mainstream popular belief that the union would lose it’s popular support .â€
“These same supporters who were just expected to shift their allegiance to a stronger rugby team and desert the players and management when they were most needed , got onto planes , trains , busses and cars and followed their team to some of the most unfashionable rugby fields in South
Africa .â€
They also turned up in their tens of thousands to step into the best rugby stadium in the whole world and , horror of horrors , instead of leaving the game early (as we see of stormers supporters more recently) , found an excuse to stay at the ground until after midnight .â€
“Why was this the case , and is this spirit of the B section alive and well today in 2006 .â€
“Always known as the last outpost , the people from Kwa Zulu Natal had , and still have , a stubborn resistance that was rooted in our ancestors resilience and ability to overcome the odds . Even when we have moved to another province or country , we clung to that identity of a province that quite candidly we call God’s Country.â€
“Provincialism may have declined in the rest of the country , but the genuine Sharks Supporter will have none of that . We support the coolest brand in world rugby and are proud enough of our allegiance that we stand up for our team – win , lose or draw .â€
“The support of the B section , as legendary as it was , has continued to this day and the Sharks Supporter of 2006 is boarding planes , trains , busses and cars ; they buy the memorabilia of their great team ; they defiantly shout their support and find contentment in knowing that they will enjoy staying after the game , when everyone else has disappeared .â€
“Our support does not depend on results – SHARKS FOREVER .â€
Nicely put , Ashley .
Personally , I see an arising from the ashes which set in after the golden 90’s era under Mac , and the emergence of a new and even more revered Natal Rugby Team . Early days , but the signs are definitely there for all to see .
You will all recall Tom Bedford writing about “shamateurism†in the late 70’s and early 80’s , when in an amateur era , certain disbursements were said to have been paid . This merely emphasizes that Natal have always been leaders in innovation and shall continue to be so , for the foreseeable future .
Structures have been put in place giving rise to a potent Wildebeest in 2006 , as a feeder to the senior franchise . The potency of the Wildebeest , surely springs from structures like a properly run academy , and the identification and nurturing of talent from an early stage .
In conclusion , the last stanza of our anthem ;
Spirit of our Kingdom , KZN our land ;
We’ve come to bear witness , we’ve come to make our stand ;
Standing strong together , United we shall be ;
See our dreams of glory , become our destiny .
Proudly black and white !!!!
3 Apr 2006, 13:07 pm
Cats good on paper , but the game is played on grass . More chance of finding rocking horse dung , than a Cats win at Ellis Park in a fortnight !!!
3 Apr 2006, 13:27 pm
cab…
yes he was always committed that was never a doubt, but he never was playing to his full potential as he was always carrying a niggle, he even says so himself. his form at stade just proves that he is a quality player and does have what it takes.
3 Apr 2006, 13:33 pm
Get rid of Quota Jacobs and half the defence problems will go away
3 Apr 2006, 14:15 pm
ebay addict – isn;t the gasman a poor mans henno mentz?
3 Apr 2006, 14:32 pm
The centre’s are definatly our problem area at the moment but I’m sure Dickie will have identified this already. I think Percy was particulary shite on Saturday. I think he is just getting on a bit now. JP is the man but his kicking is really muck. They need to sort that out as well.
3 Apr 2006, 14:32 pm
Stucky,
Typical of you, after all these years you will never change…Always blaming the non white players when there are 15 men playing in a team.
3 Apr 2006, 15:00 pm
who knows what gas man is….he is not a rugby player??
3 Apr 2006, 20:11 pm
Davidson is defensively sound….give him more than 5 minutes Dickie and he will seal the leaking channels!
3 Apr 2006, 20:15 pm
Charlie you twit
Unlike you I understand the dynamics of rugby as a team sport and realise the extent how one **** player can undermine the effort of the other 14.
Particularly centres in the modern game.
I don’t pick on Jacobs because he’s a non-white player that would just be stupid. I pick on him because his defence is absolutely atrocious and has been for the last three seasons. How many close games have the Sharks lost due to poor defence yet he will still be guaranteed a place because of the colour of his skin.
By my definition a quota is a sub-standard non-white player whose position is secure based on his skin colour. I’m not about to start cutting them any slack.
3 Apr 2006, 21:38 pm
too right Stucky….what is Bobo’s defense like?
4 Apr 2006, 02:38 am
A “quota” is ANY player who happens to have the “right” qualities to be covered by the criteria for the quota.
In South Africa that criterion is that you are not white.
All players who are not white, regardless of how good, bad or indifferent they are, are by definition “quota players”.
It will stay that way until quotas are scrapped completely.
4 Apr 2006, 08:10 am
Stucky,
Ok, so Mr. Rugby you are blaming Adi Jacobs for all the loses that the Sharks had…The one close lose this year was a match that he did’nt even played in…Against the Crusaders AJ Venter dropped a ball with no defender in front of him, a try that Jacobs would have easily scored…Against the Brumbies Henno Mentz was to stupid in going to defend on the outside and marked Stirling Mortlock, when Jacobs again bring down a charging big number 8…As I will say again rugby is 15 men game, and please start watching games with both eyes…
4 Apr 2006, 08:14 am
Stucky,
And if I am a twit, than you actually saying that **** Muir is a twit…Why is he not picking Waylon Murray at centre if you think Jacobs is part of making up the quota total ???
4 Apr 2006, 08:26 am
adrian jacobs defense and hands were very poor, there have to be better options
4 Apr 2006, 10:13 am
Come on Stucky & Bunce,
If Jacobs is and was so bad on Saturday, why is he being selected on http://www.superrugby.co.za in their inform team, you twits…
The Springbok Barometer for Week Eight:
15 Johan Pietersen (Stormers), 14 Odwa Ndungane (Sharks), 13 Adrian Jacobs (Sharks), 12 Jean de Villiers (Stormers), 11 Henno Mentz (Sharks), 10 Naas Olivier (Stormers), 9 Fourie du Preez (Bulls), 8 AJ Venter (Sharks), 7 Warren Britz (Sharks), 6 Luke Watson (Stormers), 5 Gerrie Britz (Stormers), 4 Bakkies Botha (Bulls), 3 BJ Botha (Sharks), 2 John Smit (Sharks), 1 Deon Carstens (Sharks).
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