Sharks coach John Plumtree looks forward to coming back home and resetting after a terrible start to his second stint with the franchise in the United Rugby Championship (URC).
The Sharks kicked off life under Plumtree with four successive defeats during their four-week European tour, including the shocking 12-10 defeat to Zebre on Friday.
The Sharks, without their Springbok players, also lost to URC defending champions Munster, Leinster and Ospreys.
Plumtree's men return home with just a single losing bonus-point they got in their defeat against Zebre, who had gone for 28 matches without a win.
“Pretty disappointed with the result,” Plumtree said after the game on Friday.
“Tight game, tough game. The yellow and red cards didn’t help.
“A lot of our basic skill sets let us down tonight, just losing the aerial battle was a key thing that allowed them to dominate territory,” he said.
“We had a couple of nice moments on attack, but really didn’t capitalise on the opportunities that were available.
“I was proud of the effort around our goal line defence and a lot of young players really stood up tonight physically.”
Aphelele Fassi and Hyron Andrews received yellow and red cards respectively for bad tackles during the match.
In his summary of the tour, Plumtree didn’t hide his disappointment as he felt a win or two was possible.
“Disappointing tour. We could have picked up a win or two. That didn’t happen. We are looking forward to getting back home now and we will reset and work hard to get some momentum going and improve our results at home.”
The Sharks play their first home game of the season against Connacht at Kings Park Stadium on Saturday, November 18 (5pm).
The Sharks inability to perform without a host of their Springboks is a major concern that Plumtree and his technical team will have to tackle head on to give the side a chance to win a piece of silverware.
Sharks coach Plumtree disappointed with result against Zebre, aims to change things at home
Image: Gaspafotos/MB Media/Getty Images
Sharks coach John Plumtree looks forward to coming back home and resetting after a terrible start to his second stint with the franchise in the United Rugby Championship (URC).
The Sharks kicked off life under Plumtree with four successive defeats during their four-week European tour, including the shocking 12-10 defeat to Zebre on Friday.
The Sharks, without their Springbok players, also lost to URC defending champions Munster, Leinster and Ospreys.
Plumtree's men return home with just a single losing bonus-point they got in their defeat against Zebre, who had gone for 28 matches without a win.
“Pretty disappointed with the result,” Plumtree said after the game on Friday.
“Tight game, tough game. The yellow and red cards didn’t help.
“A lot of our basic skill sets let us down tonight, just losing the aerial battle was a key thing that allowed them to dominate territory,” he said.
“We had a couple of nice moments on attack, but really didn’t capitalise on the opportunities that were available.
“I was proud of the effort around our goal line defence and a lot of young players really stood up tonight physically.”
Aphelele Fassi and Hyron Andrews received yellow and red cards respectively for bad tackles during the match.
In his summary of the tour, Plumtree didn’t hide his disappointment as he felt a win or two was possible.
“Disappointing tour. We could have picked up a win or two. That didn’t happen. We are looking forward to getting back home now and we will reset and work hard to get some momentum going and improve our results at home.”
The Sharks play their first home game of the season against Connacht at Kings Park Stadium on Saturday, November 18 (5pm).
The Sharks inability to perform without a host of their Springboks is a major concern that Plumtree and his technical team will have to tackle head on to give the side a chance to win a piece of silverware.
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