Sharks must embrace tactical sphere
6 Apr 2011
JON CARDINELLI writes that a meeting with the Lions demands a less adventurous approach from the overly-ambitious Sharks.
The Sharks can’t afford to lose to the Lions. They’ve lost three on the trot, two of which they would have expected to win against the Chiefs and Stormers. They’re no longer setting the standard in the South African conference. They’re scrapping for second place.
A win against the Lions will provide some respite as they head into a bye week. While they’re unlikely to make up ground against the Stormers, they do have an opportunity to surpass the Bulls. The Sharks should expect at least eight points (one for a win and one for a bye) in the next two weeks, while the Bulls will be lucky to win one of their next two encounters against the Crusaders and Reds.
The Sharks should expect to win this weekend, but there are no guarantees. They lost to the Lions in the pre-season, and will know that John Mitchell’s charges are more dangerous than their record suggests.
The Lions went down to the Reds last Saturday, but produced a first half-showing that highlighted some potential in the forwards. Andre Pretorius controlled the game cleverly during that opening half-hour, and if he had kicked for goal more accurately, the Lions may have indeed sneaked an upset.
The Lions’ struggle for composure and their inability to finish is costing them. Defence is another ongoing problem, and the better teams have exposed them in this area.
Where they have got it right, in patches, is on attack. The first 30 minutes against the Reds was characterised by good ball control and impressive physicality at the collisions. They took the Reds forwards on in this department, and successfully limited the space available to the free-running backs.
The Sharks are similar to the Reds in that they depend on the momentum of their forwards. It’s the reason they’ve lost three in a row, as when their forwards haven’t dominated, they have failed to control possession and win territory via other means.
They will need to lift their physicality when they host the Lions, but they will also need to vary their attack. This involves unleashing their monstrous ball-carriers from within opposition territory rather than building the attacking pressure from within their own half.
The Lions’ loose approach will provide them with counter-attacking opportunities, and the Sharks are a side that can take advantage of those chances. But when they have possession, they have to appreciate that controlling possession sometimes means kicking for the touchline and then pressuring the opposition at the subsequent lineout and ruck.
They were handed a lesson by the Stormers last week, and it’s one they need to take to heart. The Sharks’ early results overshadowed some deficiencies in their game, as poor ball control and the unwillingness to vary their attack often led to greater periods on defence, and thus a higher count of missed tackles.
The Lions match represents an opportunity to end on a high before enjoying a bye, but it also represents a chance to embrace a more accurate and complete game. They have the personnel to implement this approach, and with the return of Pat Lambie in Round 10, that approach will become more potent. For now, it’s about striking a better balance.
345 Comments
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6 Apr 2011, 14:07 pm
jacobs might be good for the sharks but he should never be considrd for the boks again together with meisiekind.young guns like jdj and lambie are the future now.
6 Apr 2011, 14:07 pm
@sharks_lover(sharks_lover)-96:
what’s the story with adi jacobs?
he recovered from injury ages ago no?
he seems to get no gametime at all.
6 Apr 2011, 14:08 pm
@stew(stew)-98: correct stew
now they have purchased a couple of fairly good centers that will be with them in june
but they also has some great young up and coming centers like paul jordaan , i just wish they will get the kid in , this kid is a super star of note as far as i am concerned
6 Apr 2011, 14:09 pm
@The X-factor is staying at home.(gunther)-102: mostly cos he’s just baaaaad.
6 Apr 2011, 14:10 pm
The Sharks should try and get Frans Steyn back as inside centre ….. hunble pie needs to be eaten by the Sharks
6 Apr 2011, 14:11 pm
@Pick the team in August not March(stormersboy)-104:
michael jackson bad?
6 Apr 2011, 14:14 pm
@The X-factor is staying at home.(gunther)-102: gunther no he had an injury came back then got injured again
he is now injury free as far as i know, and in the last few times he has come onto the field has looked quite good
6 Apr 2011, 14:15 pm
@stew(stew)-105: The problem is not at 12… Its 13 where a good strike runner is needed. Stefan, bless him, is a loyal servant but at 13 he is solid… Mind you SA on the whole has a drastic shortage of World Class 13s… Only one: Mossie.
6 Apr 2011, 14:18 pm
Judging purely on the personell the sharks have for this weekend if i was coach i would pick:
15. ludick
14. jp
13. teblanche
12. adi
11. mvovo
10. bosman
09. mcleod
08. daniel
07. alberts
06. deysel
05. skeate
04. sykes
03. jannie
02. smit
01. beast
16 bissie
17 van staden
18 mostert
19 botes
20 hoffman
21 jlp
22 ndungane
Choices are to increase potency at lineout for solid 1st phase ball. JLP hasnt impressed regardless of the weather. his primary aim is to take control which he failed to do. Bosman looked slightly more comfortable at 10 against saders.
Would also consider giving vodacom cup full back kobus de kock an opportunity at 15.
Sharks need more than solid and reliable at this stage. solid and reliable wins you curry cups like johan roets but they need something more flash and dynamic
6 Apr 2011, 14:18 pm
@The X-factor is staying at home.(gunther)-106: More like Witney Houston when she was married to Bobby Brown Baaaad
6 Apr 2011, 14:18 pm
@Heavens Game(Heavens Game)-108: JDJ the next best 13 IMO.
6 Apr 2011, 14:19 pm
@Heavens Game(Heavens Game)-108: You are correct …. a new Fourie / Mortlock needs to be found at 13 …… Waylon Murray did wonders for you guys at this position
6 Apr 2011, 14:19 pm
@stew(stew)-105: and ruan and barritt
6 Apr 2011, 14:20 pm
@Pick the team in August not March(stormersboy)-111: Maybe. But I think he is the best 12.
6 Apr 2011, 14:20 pm
I think J Smit is faster than Adi at the moment
6 Apr 2011, 14:21 pm
@Pick the team in August not March(stormersboy)-111: Can see this guy disappearing at the Stormers ….. that is one benefit about the NZ system is that a player like JDJ could be loaned to the Sharks where he would get game time – that is what he needs
6 Apr 2011, 14:22 pm
@sharks_lover(sharks_lover)-113: Barrit is in the England frame now so lost to SA – thank **** for that
6 Apr 2011, 14:23 pm
@Heavens Game(Heavens Game)-108: You dont reckon JDJ is a quality 13?
6 Apr 2011, 14:24 pm
didnt know **** muir was a swear word on keo
6 Apr 2011, 14:24 pm
@Heavens Game(Heavens Game)-108:
i agree…sharks centres adi,bosman,swanepoel,terblanche are reliable but arent going to add that extra dimension.
They will make 2 out of 10 mistakes but they wont make more than 2 out of 10 positive go forward contributions.
Where as your new zealand centres will make 5 out of 10 mistakes but they will make 8 out of 10 positive contributions.
SA centres are taught to be reliable so they are conservative.
I view Taute of the lions as following an almost identical path to Mossie.
Lets hope we stop converting all our centres/fullbacks with speed and ability to think and defend into loosies at school boy level
6 Apr 2011, 14:25 pm
@Heavens Game(Heavens Game)-108:
I reckon he’s a better 13.
6 Apr 2011, 14:26 pm
@stew(stew)-116: Nope!!! no loaning to anyone, S15 is played over 6 freaken months!!!, the final is in July!!!!!, you need all the squad depth you can find.
6 Apr 2011, 14:27 pm
@stew(stew)-112: Letting Murray go was a mistake… Dolf needs a rap over the knuckles for that.
Joubert is not the answer for the Sharks… He has been playing most of his rugger for Clermont at 12. Rougerie has been their 13.
Not sure about Cooke, but we shall see. I prefer Jacobs to Cooke at 13 anyday. But Jacobs has lost top-end speed and his D is not as good as Terreblanche… That been said, having Jacobs at 13 might improve attack in the outside channels for the Sharks.
Its a farking quandary… I tend to agree with SL – wouldn’t mind this Jordaan at 13, but it would be better to bring him through at CC first…
However, Lambie was flung in at the deep end – if you good enough then it doesn’t matter how young… He is proof.
6 Apr 2011, 14:28 pm
@chucky(chucky)-120: What happened to Walter Venter and Thabang Molefe?
6 Apr 2011, 14:28 pm
@chucky(chucky)-120: I see Taute in the Christian Cullen mode – leave him where he is he will be brilliant
6 Apr 2011, 14:29 pm
@chucky(chucky)-120: You have a point about Taute. Great observation.
6 Apr 2011, 14:30 pm
@chucky(chucky)-120: best up and comming 12 in the country is paul jordaan
best 13 is JDJ
taute is also showing great promise be it 15 or 13
6 Apr 2011, 14:30 pm
@XhosaKid(XhosaKid)-122: I hope that the old format of super rugby is reverted to.
and either amalgamate the lions/cheetahs to become one or drop the cheeaths. their line up is not super quality. if you dont have 80% of you squad who can play at the same intensity as the starting xv then you are NOT Super rugby material.
else change the name from super rugby to a new name appropriate for the quality
6 Apr 2011, 14:32 pm
Wonder what happened to Morgan Neuman at the Cheetahs. We laoned him to them and he didn;t even make the team. He was highly touted a year or so ago.
Whitehead?
6 Apr 2011, 14:32 pm
@Heavens Game(Heavens Game)-123: HG they can play jordaan at 13 , he is according to reports around being the quickest backline player in this country
i say play him with a senior 12 then that he can feed off and a good 10 like lambie
6 Apr 2011, 14:32 pm
@The X-factor is staying at home.(gunther)-121: Might be. Better than most at 13 other than Mossie.
However at 12, especially in combo with Mossie, second to none.
I would give my left ballas to see Lambie, JdJ and Mossie in the midfield… With FdP’s service…
6 Apr 2011, 14:34 pm
Buying Joubert will be a huge mistake – they need YOUNG talent that can develop over a few seasons for the Sharks IMO
6 Apr 2011, 14:34 pm
@sharks_lover(sharks_lover)-130: At junior level he might be shining at 12, but I reckon long term he looks like a 13… He runs like a bigger version of Conrad Smith.
6 Apr 2011, 14:35 pm
@chucky(chucky)-128: what happened to the very good up and comming 13/15 from the sharks U21′s last year Wynand Pienaar
**** he was very highly rated , but has just dissapeared
6 Apr 2011, 14:35 pm
Positional play at centre is not just about bashing up and speed – what has happened to the skill sets of centres in SA ???
6 Apr 2011, 14:39 pm
@stew(stew)-135: The coaches and fans get caught in this schoolboy coaching mind set…. SA backline coaching on the whole is up the pole, to be honest.
6 Apr 2011, 14:40 pm
@sharks_lover(sharks_lover)-130: After seeing that youtube clip you put up the otherday. Jordaan looks bloody fast. How old is he now? 19? Age don’t matter really as we saw last year when Lambie played FB in the S14.
We could do with Jordaan right now actually.
6 Apr 2011, 14:41 pm
keep your eye on this lad……..pure class !!
Johann Sadie
Position: Centre
Physical: 1.86m, 95kg
Born: 23 January 1989, Malmesbury
WP Caps: 5
WP Points: 5 (1t)
WP Debut: 2010 vs Border
Stormers Caps: 0
Stormers Points: 0
Stormers Debut: –
Sadie is one of the exciting youngsters making their way through the Province ranks. He featured prominently in the u21 side which won the trophy in 2010, and was part of the victorius Maties team which won the 2010 FNB Varsity Cup. Having also played Vodacom Cup, as well as taken part in the SA IRB Junior World Championships in 2009, Sadie is an exciting prospect for the future and will relish playing Super Rugby.
6 Apr 2011, 14:42 pm
@XhosaKid(XhosaKid)-118: He is a quality backline player. That good enough?
6 Apr 2011, 14:43 pm
@Puma(Puma)-137: I thought Paul Treu has recruited him for the SA Sevens and then got injured or I might be mistaken, I somehow remember seeing being carried off the field during a sevens games
6 Apr 2011, 14:44 pm
Happy birthday Cape Colony!
Long-haired Jan Van Riebs. started you going way back on the 6th of April, 1652, making you 359 years old today.
But sadly look where you are and consider the sorry mess you have created in that interim.
6 Apr 2011, 14:46 pm
@Heavens Game(Heavens Game)-133: HG and he is a accurate kicker with a big boot too
and yes he can be played at 13
6 Apr 2011, 14:47 pm
i’m interested in the ‘reports doing the rounds that paul jordaan is the quickest backline player in the country’! Maybe if i go to the SARU website they’ll have a report from the High Performance Centre where jordaan would’ve been mesasured.
6 Apr 2011, 14:47 pm
the sharks academy has grounded tyo a halt due to the fact that they can’t stock it with poached cheetahs and lions players anymore.natal rugby was mediocre for 100 years and it looks like that they will find themselves back in that scenario sooner rather than later.it’s a well known fact that they build up the brand by splashing out the money but now that the money is slowly drying up and sponsors deserting them they are on a downward spiral.
6 Apr 2011, 14:48 pm
@XhosaKid(XhosaKid)-140: xhosa , yes this kid did get injured but not a bad injury , was really doing well in the 7′s
6 Apr 2011, 14:48 pm
@XhosaKid(XhosaKid)-140: Yes he did pick up a injury. Not sure where but heard he did.
Looking at the clip with him scoring that blistering try against England. This youngster has it in bucket loads. S_L was totally correct.
I also like Sithole. He has impressed me huge in the 7′s. Now I know he is with the Sharks so is Jordaan. Good for our future those two.
6 Apr 2011, 14:49 pm
@Transformation(Transformation)-143: there you go do some homework transie , you know you can do it as ur our copy and paste king
6 Apr 2011, 14:50 pm
@ET.(ET.)-141: Yes, the one province in SA that is properly run and has a decent government.
Higher service delivery, less corruption tah all the rest. Even Vavi thinks so.
But you probably already know that, you are just stirring for a response as usual, which I have just given you.
6 Apr 2011, 14:50 pm
@Puma(Puma)-146: hiyas brudda
yes jordaan is superb and is old enough
sithole is big strong and fast
i am sure he will also come into the reckoning real soon
6 Apr 2011, 14:51 pm
@sharks_lover(sharks_lover)-145: Put up that addie again with Jordaan’s try, so Transie can take a look… lol.
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