Neutral view backs Sharks
27 Jul 2012
Lions interim coach Johan Ackermann believes the Sharks will achieve victory over the Stormers in the Super Rugby semi-final at Newlands.
There have been plenty of opinions heading into Saturday’s South African showdown in Cape Town.
Pundits have backed the Stormers because of their impeccable record at Newlands this season (they haven’t lost a home game in 2012), while it’s believed that the Cape franchise’s game plan is suitable for finals rugby. Several Stormers players have also pointed to their experience in these high-pressure games after appearing in the last two tournament semi-finals.
However, Ackermann said the Sharks should be considered favourites as they’re one of the few teams who have the arsenal to defeat home side.
‘The Stormers will be tough to beat at home,’ Ackermann told keo.co.za. ‘Home-ground advantage will be a factor, and their defence and accurate goal-kickers will be essential during the match. Those are the kind of things that have helped them achieve so much success during the league stage, especially in those tight contests.
‘But if there was ever a team who could pick up a win at Newlands on Saturday, it would be the Sharks. They have the game breakers needed to test the Stormers. Current form and momentum are also in their favour. There will be concerns whether the travel fatigue will affect them. But if they can overcome it and their players are managed very well, the Sharks will be a big threat.’
Ackermann has a point.
While the Stormers have an flawless 2012 record at home, they haven’t been convincing. Five of their eight victories at Newlands have been won by six points or less. They have only beaten the Hurricanes (39-26), Blues (27-17) and Lions (27-27) by more comfortable margins. The Sharks will also draw confidence from the last encounter between the two teams, which they won 25-20 in Durban.
Ackermann’s prediction sees the Sharks winning the second semi-final, but added that this will disadvantage South Africa’s challenge for silverware.
‘I think the Sharks will win. They have the momentum and form. But this will make their task even harder, as they’ll have to fly to New Zealand for the final. That would be too much travelling for any team.
‘If the Stormers win, they’ll host the title decider. That would be South Africa’s best bet for winning the Super Rugby trophy.’
By Gareth Duncan
104 Comments
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27 Jul 2012, 13:41 pm
@Captain Sam Vimes-37: I watched the game and it didn’t really bother me who won, my opinion is that Craig had a fantastic game, he isn’t rated the best for nothing.
27 Jul 2012, 13:56 pm
@rangerman-44:
If the Sharks had beaten the Lions they would have ended 4th and played the ‘Saders at KP instead of the Reds. If they won they’d have to play the Chiefs away in the semi.
27 Jul 2012, 13:59 pm
Lol, Stormers are by far the favourites, they have acieved what they set out to do from getgo, now they want to put the cherry ontop of that aim, Tey have every thing going for them, this morning we saw the fresher team have the legs to climb further up the hill, and that against a Saders team that didnt even have to travel,
The Shaarks have got far more going against them as has been the traveling etc, I will be the first to admit that if we win this match it will be a small miracle.
As for Ackermann?? Well i know for a fact where his heart is etc, so i am not surprised he has gone with the Sharks for victory.
Fact is one has to be realistic re the obstacles, My heart says Sharks, my head says Stormers,and so the emotional rollercoaster will continue untill this match is played.
27 Jul 2012, 14:00 pm
@David-52: So maybe the Sharks played it smart and knew which was the easier route
27 Jul 2012, 14:05 pm
@Tarlo-48:
@willievz-49:
Sure, but the lack of thoroughness of the journos on this site to elicit any real valuable input into the potential outcome is frustrating.
I am sure that doing a few astral charts for all the players, seeking guidance from numerology experts and seeking to understand the alignment of stars and its influence on this game will at last be able to break this deadlock of views which ultimately say…
2 GOOD TEAMS WILL PLAY, EITHER COULD WIN…!
amen
27 Jul 2012, 14:14 pm
Since 1998 the Stormers had an average home score of 24-19 (Win by 5 points), and an average away score of 20-21 (lose by 1 point) against the sharks. Home advantage therefore counts for something (not much though) as the swing based on where they play is only 6 points. The effect of the travelling across many time zones and that the sharks will perhaps have more “bumps and bruises” must be added to it. This “advantage” must be balanced against the possibility that the Stormers might be “rusty” after the 2 weeks break and that the momentum and current form is with the sharks.
Emotional roller coaster indeed as Sharkslover has said.
Anybody’s game.
27 Jul 2012, 14:17 pm
My sporting hopes (not predictions) for the weekend were/are:
1. Chiefs to win
2. Mark Cavendish to win gold in the Olympic road cycling race tomorrow
3. Stormers to win.
I have one out of 3 so far. No 3 is of course the most important by far. It’s unlikely that I will get all 3 so let’s hope somebody outsprints Mark tomorrow on the line
27 Jul 2012, 14:19 pm
Oh where is a psychic octopuss when you need one?
I put a sharks flag and a stormers flag on the lawn outside my work.
So far 2 pigeons, 1 hadida and a sparrow have defecated on the sharks flag versus 1 pigeon, 1 hadida and a loerie on the stormers flag.
Stil,… just too tight to call it!
27 Jul 2012, 14:23 pm
@Mongril-58:
So the Stormers to take it by the width of a pigeon if we assume that a sparrow and loerie count for the same?
27 Jul 2012, 14:27 pm
@Robzim-59:
Inconclusive I’m afraid.
It was the same hadida that decorated both flags and he definately squeezed more on the stormers side…
It’s so hard to find good solid advice these days (still beats wasting a phone call on getting Ackerman’s view though!)
27 Jul 2012, 14:35 pm
@Mongril-60:
Dammit, I was hoping for good news.
Drop a few seeds or bread-crumbs near the Shark’s flag and see what happens
27 Jul 2012, 14:39 pm
lol
Mongril ..
since it is a tight call you now have to go to the flags and look for bird pooo….
the one with the most is the one full of kak…
27 Jul 2012, 14:41 pm
@Robzim-61:
Oh sure, take the science out of the prediction! That would leave us right back at getting sound bites from ex rugby players. Heaven knows, Keo could stil put a call through to Ollie le Roux some time today.
I’m already worried that the greater amount of black in the sharks flag will attract more birds to pooh on it due to the additional sunlight it attracts, hence creating a warmer avian defecation area (again, would make this entire experiment non submissable in most noted scientific journals).
27 Jul 2012, 14:54 pm
@David-52: Partly true David. If we did end up on 4th then we would have had a play off at KP against the Saders. However, Sharks would still be playing Stormers in a semi this week. Because we would be the lowest play off team alive right now. Reds would have had to play Chiefs in the other semi (they were on 3rd) because of the conference system. Chiefs would have beaten the Reds in that semi. So looking at it that way we would only have had to travel only once to play Chiefs for the final. That is if we win our semi. So losing to the Lions was huge in us having to travel back and forward across the Indian Ocean.
27 Jul 2012, 14:58 pm
De Facto and De Jure favourites?
Seriously?
27 Jul 2012, 15:03 pm
@Mongril-63:
two steps ahead of you.
we’ve got ollie at the newlands spur.
he’s squidgy, like an octopus so we figure he’s eyesights probably poor.
the idea is to continually put two spur burgers in front of him non stop… one with a wp flag, the other a sharkie flag.
he’ll keep eating, of course… whichever flags burgers get eaten the most… there’s your winner right there…
27 Jul 2012, 15:05 pm
@the artist formerly known as gunther-65:
De Fatcat trumps both.
27 Jul 2012, 15:08 pm
JP needs to own greatness
Simnikiwe Xabanisa | 26 July, 2012
THE lousy thing about being identified as a talented individual is that you spend a significant amount of your life trying to live up to other people’s expectations.
Former Springbok utility back Gaffie du Toit knows about that baggage all too well.
After introducing himself with a stupendous performance for Griquas – when he dropped a goal from the parking lot, redefined the laws of geometry with some of the goal-kicks he nailed, and put in a jaw-dropping solo try for good effect – somebody christened him “Giftige Gaffie du Toit”, and the die was cast.
In a candid interview much later, the flyhalf explained why he could be a genius and a dunce within the space of five minutes in a match.
He said after his perfect storm for Griquas, he had pushed himself too hard to achieve the same in every match, because that was what people expected from him.
What he forgot was that every match is a bit like a day in one’s life.
They both have personalities of their own, so being named man of the match for scoring a full house one day can easily give way to being feted for making one key pass the next.
It’s an important lesson Du Toit struggled with throughout his career, and I wonder if Sharks winger Jon-Paul Roger (JP) Pietersen has it down pat or if we expect too much of him.
Named after Wales’ legendary JPR Williams and being the nephew of former Sharks player Christie Noble, the wing, and sometimes fullback and centre, was up against it from day one.
But he came bearing wonderful rugby gifts like size, power, pace, explosiveness, skill, a taste for the big occasion, and a rugby brain to make sure that all his natural attributes fly in formation.
You’d be hard-pressed to find a rugby player who wouldn’t die happy with Pietersen’s successes.
He topped the try-scoring in the 2007 Super 14 with 12 tries; won the World Cup with the Springboks; and has two Currie Cup winner’s medals.
And all this he has done by the ripe old age of 26.
Yet for all of that, one can’t shake the feeling Pietersen has underachieved.
The year after he was the top try-scorer in the Super 14 was followed by a season in which he failed to score a single try in the competition.
And the abiding image of his 2007 campaign is not a swallow dive over the tryline, but of him vainly trying to knock the ball out of Bryan Habana’s hands as he scored the winning try in the Super 14 final.
Ability-wise, Pietersen is right up there with the Habanas, Joe Rokocokos and the Sitiveni Sivivatus of this world.
But his stats don’t tally up, as 14 tries from 45 Bok caps will testify. By contrast, Habana could retire today and he will have won everything there is to win.
I compare him with Habana because they are contemporaries and Pietersen is every bit as talented, if not more so.
But Habana’s default setting when that most promiscuous of mistresses, form, deserts him, is to find other ways to contribute. Pietersen goes from racehorse to carthorse.
Pietersen only ever visits greatness, like some holiday destination. His contemporaries seek to live there.
Ironically, the reason for raising the question is his starting to dominate games like we suspected he could this year, as evidenced by his performances in the last two months.
One wonders if he’s just visiting again, or at long last he’s finally decided to be at one with his massive ability.
Here’s hoping he finds that fine balance between hitting his targets and meeting our extravagant expectations.
27 Jul 2012, 15:14 pm
One wandered how many calls Gareth had to make before he found a neutral who was prepared to back the sharks?
27 Jul 2012, 15:20 pm
Just incase my fellow Sharks supporters dont know this and would want to watch??
SS1 is showing the Sharks U21 match live at 17h00, or you can watch it on
http://www.vipbox.tv/watch/63369/1/border-bulldogs-u21-vs-sharks-u21-live-stream-online.html
27 Jul 2012, 15:23 pm
@the artist formerly known as gunther-69: Oyi there are 2 atleast that did back them,
Ackers as well as Ashwin
27 Jul 2012, 15:24 pm
@sharks_lover-70: Sharks under 21s:
15 Jaco van Tonder, 14 Piet Lindeque (@PietLindeque), 13 Wandi Mjekevu (@WandileMjekevu), 12 Heimar Williams (capt) (@HeimarWilliams), 11 Sizo Maseko, 10 Fred Zeilinga (@fredzeilinga), 9 Hanco Venter (@venter9hanco), 8 Braam Steyn (@BraamSteyn), 7 Franna Kleinhans, 6 Chris Cloete (@Chris_Cloete6), 5 Stephan Lewies (@lewies4), 4 Brendon Groenewald (@Brensous), 3 Nick Schonert, 2 Franco Marais, 1 Danie Mienie (@mieniedanie)
16 Allan Dell (@TallyCat3), 17 Maks van Dyk(@maksvandyk) ,18 Stefan Willemse, 19 Khaya Majola (@majolak), 20 Gavin Hauptfleisch ,21 Jared Meyer (@meyerz12), 22 Keelin Bastew
27 Jul 2012, 15:25 pm
@sharks_lover-71:
Ashwyn bet his house on the Crusaders this morning.
27 Jul 2012, 15:27 pm
@the artist formerly known as gunther-73:
the idjut lmfao
27 Jul 2012, 15:35 pm
@sharks_lover-74:
He is my de facto favourite commentator.
27 Jul 2012, 15:36 pm
As they have been saying all week and the strategy the Poofta Vindgats should employ against the Sharks, its all pretty simple and it goes for any match really.
1) do you as a team pitch up, like the Sharks did against Reds and the Bulls did against the Crusifers? One did, one didnt– simple ..same story for any match, in any sport. We will only find out after the 1st 20mins tmw.
2) Sharks were bolloxed after the Reds match. They gave it their all. That took some doing. Look at Daneils face during the interview — bolloxed. So do the Poofta Vindgats attack like *** savagers and give it their smack-bottom all in those first 20 mins to deny the Sharks points using the jetlag to their advantage? mmmm! Risky or not? That can only mean they would defend like crazy, not attack as this is not their game plan. Sharks are one of the smarter teams. Brut force is something of the passed, the combination is the deadliest( pity the Bok Management havent figured this one out, we could make the All Blacks look boring if we really wanted). They know how to attack, some players are reaching good form, can and have beaten the Poofta Vindgats. the Travel factor: This can be over come. The Cruisifers have mastered it and so too have the All Blacks so why cant the Sharks figure this out( the Boks are to stupid too) Maybe they have maybe they havent? The Reds game is not enough to go by. So the Sharks are going to be more tired than last week. Travel factor- depends on point one – find out tmw.
3) What are the chances of the Sharks grabbing silverware? This borders on near impossible with regards to the travel factor. Chiefs are feeling pretty chuffed with themselves after todays result. They are now on song for any match next week, the by week is now in the passed. Theory states the Poofta Vindgats have a better chance than the Sharks grabbing sliverware – travel factor. Now this is mostly likely, but again depends on point one – if you really want something in life you can get it – simple. Just hurdle the obsticals and your are on your way…..! The Sharks will have to rely on Mr Insomnia and Mrs Nausea and take them to heart and make them their best friends.
So the morel of the story to all you beautiful people, including those who have silly things to say about other bloggers( the kids on this site). We’ll find out tomorrow so stop waisting your time reading nonsense and rather spend your day or part of our day doing some good for a change. Smile at a stranger, greet a stranger, help Gogo across the road or dont kick your dog but be nice to him instead and give him a bath.
27 Jul 2012, 15:39 pm
@sharks_lover-72: why do these kids’ name come with twitter handles? geez
27 Jul 2012, 15:41 pm
The morel of the story?
This is mushrooming out of control.
27 Jul 2012, 15:42 pm
@@transie69
I have no idea.
27 Jul 2012, 15:43 pm
@Mongril-47: Hehehe!!
27 Jul 2012, 15:44 pm
@@poeftagunther: ok.
27 Jul 2012, 15:46 pm
@the artist formerly known as gunther-65: But they are up against De Villiers and De Jongh.
27 Jul 2012, 15:47 pm
@Transformation-81:
Hahaha sorry man I didn’t mean to upset you.
27 Jul 2012, 15:49 pm
@Greenies-76: The Bulls pitched up for the Saders.
But, as they soon found out, it was boys versus men.
Their strategy was also flawed as they launched offensive runs from too deep, and could not protect their ball on the ground which made the Crusaders’ counterruck look extra effective.
They also kick too much without considering alternative options. I know that Kiwi teams kick more on average than the Saffa teams, but they do so after considering other options and not in predetermined fashion.
27 Jul 2012, 15:51 pm
@the artist formerly known as gunther-83: not upset @ all
27 Jul 2012, 15:54 pm
@stormer in a teacup-82:
Snaaks.
27 Jul 2012, 16:00 pm
@the artist formerly known as gunther-65:
Why don’t you write a haiku about it, or whatever it is you’re trying to write on this site.
27 Jul 2012, 16:01 pm
@willievz-84: ja, when MSteyn has the ball and sees basson, kirchner, ndungane running in support, the 1st and only thing on his BLOODY mind is “oh my sack, CHASERS!” and he stupidly kicks to nowhere.
the quote below tell you all you need to know.
Bulls have plenty to play for
2012-07-18 12:44
Sport24 columnist Johann Sadie
“Although we practice the kick-and-chase tactic quite a lot, it has now become a natural part of our game. Every player knows exactly where to be when employing it. The guys are quite well-oiled in that department.”
27 Jul 2012, 16:04 pm
@Transformation-88: The kick-chase tactic per se is fine.
It just needs to have more unpredictability written over it.
But with Morne, we have a fait accompli.
27 Jul 2012, 16:04 pm
just imagine jan serfontein, william small-smith, francois venter, handre pollard, josh stander all trying hard to make kick & chase a NATURAL part of their game!
27 Jul 2012, 16:06 pm
@willievz-84:
Lets not forget that the Bulls fell off tackles, were bullied at the breakdown, failed to dominate the collisions, chased their kicks poorly and were abysmal on their set pieces…
A major rethink is required.
27 Jul 2012, 16:08 pm
@willievz-87:
Don’t be like that.
If you talk out your bum on a blog you’ll get called on it.
No hard feelings buddy
27 Jul 2012, 16:10 pm
@willievz-89: well we have “fait accompli” because mr man cannot think further than his boot, he is a bloody robot!
27 Jul 2012, 16:13 pm
bulls wingers were targeted for injury.
27 Jul 2012, 16:13 pm
@Transformation-93:
It’s time for the bulls to sell him on.
27 Jul 2012, 16:14 pm
there’s your tactic in its arse right there
27 Jul 2012, 16:14 pm
@wait for it, wait for it…-94:
27 Jul 2012, 16:14 pm
@the artist formerly known as gunther-95:
a bird in the hand, gunner… a bird in the hand…
27 Jul 2012, 16:16 pm
@wait for it, wait for it…-98:
If you love it.
Set it free.
27 Jul 2012, 16:17 pm
@the artist formerly known as gunther-99:
set it free?
to go where?
parys..?..
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