Before Sharks clash, Toulouse detour to Cape to honour player swept to sea

Stade Toulousain (Toulouse) are making a detour en route to their Champions Cup encounter with the Sharks in Durban on Saturday.

The defending champions will do some of their preparation in Cape Town but will also take time out to honour the memory of fallen teammate Mehdi Narjissi near the spot where he died last year.

In August, Narjissi, one of their junior players, was swept out to sea during a recovery session with the France U-18 team near Cape Point. France, England, Ireland and Georgia were in South Africa for a tournament when the tragedy struck. His body was never recovered.

Toulouse president Didier Lacroix said in an interview on Sud Radio last month: “We plan to stay the whole week in South Africa. This will allow us to pay tribute to a country that touched us and that touched one of us last summer. We will go and spend some time there.”

Toulouse will then make their way to Durban where the Sharks, who have won one and lost one, are hoping to maintain their challenge in Europe's elite competition.

The Sharks' Springbok prop Ox Nché is under no illusions about the challenge facing them.

“They're the champions and they are on form, having won two out of two in the competition, winning home and away, so they've shown their quality,” Nché told his team's website.

Toulouse, the defending champions and serial winners of the competition, certainly mean business after running in 19 tries in their first two matches. They also rested key players last week for this weekend's fixture.

“They're bringing a full-strength side to South Africa, I think it's going to be exciting. I enjoy testing myself against the best in the world and, for me, that's the assumption this week,” Nché said.

“There aren't a lot of teams who come close to how Toulouse play, their free-flowing game, dominant set-piece and the way they gel together.

“I think this is going to be one of the most exciting games we're going to play this season,” Nché predicted.

The Bok loosehead is rolling up his sleeves for the set-piece battle. “French rugby is very much about the scrum set-piece and Toulouse are probably the best team currently on their form.

“They are adaptable, they are happy to try new tricks, though they have a system that works for them and won't stray too much from what they do.

“They're strong and when you think you've beaten them in one scrum, they come back at the next one, so it's going to be a good scrumming challenge, one I'm looking forward to.”

With the visitors boasting several internationals, Nché agrees experience gained through the Springboks could prove handy.

“We will have to bring some of our expertise on what to expect and how we played against France. We've played against a lot of those guys, so there's a lot of French rugby DNA and South African rugby DNA.”