A re-energised Sharks team want to double down and rub more salt into the wounds of a Stormers side that is hurting after stumbling to a 30-19 defeat against the Durban outfit in Cape Town last week, coach JP Pietersen said.
The loss ended the Stormers’ impressive eight-match unbeaten run in the United Rugby Championship (URC) and knocked them off the top of the log.
After a commanding display in Cape Town, Pietersen said his team must be wary of a Stormers side out for revenge at Kings Park (kickoff Saturday at 5pm).
“We took our opportunities better than the Stormers in Cape Town, and they made some unforced errors when they got into our 22,” Pietersen said.
“They will be kicking themselves because they created opportunities they could not finish. They have something to work on; they will come back harder next week at Kings Park.
“The turnaround will be short before the second match, and we will refresh and recover on Monday. It is the same team we are playing, so we don’t have to completely change the plan, but we can tweak things here and there,” Pietersen said.
“We will have a full go again, and we know the Stormers will come to Durban wanting to prove a point.
“The challenge in rugby is always, ‘Can you double up?’ and that is the thing.”
Pietersen paid tribute to his captain, Andre Esterhuizen, who led from the front in Cape Town.
“When I came in [as the new coach], the first change was making Andre captain,” he said. “He is a Sharks boy and knows Durban in and out and lives and breathes Durban.
“Credit to Andre and the boys for looking up and seeing space against the Stormers,” he said.
“As a coach you want players to express themselves. Andre always challenges the group, and when he plays well, the team plays well, and I love the way he carries the team.
“I told the group we need to qualify for playoffs in the United Rugby Championship, and that was the goal, and to get good leadership in the group.
“We want to keep the plan simple and to be aligned with Andre to express themselves on the field.
“I am the guy who takes responsibility off the field.
“It is important to give the players clarity about what we want from them and give them cohesion.
“The squad has been training for the whole of January, and there was a rotation of the team so everyone had a chance to play.
“We are still trying to figure out how to implement our Bok players with the calendar.
“I think Stormers coach John Dobson will be a bit disappointed and frustrated,” Pietersen said. “They created opportunities to score in our 22, and we did on the other side, and we scored and came away with points.
“I think those are the margins of the game.
“When you create pressure, then you have to turn that into points, and I think that was the difference between the teams. The one side converted and the other did not.
“We want the fans to see that our players care and want to make the jersey proud, and that was my first speech to the team,” Pietersen said.
“It was a South African derby, and it was physical and hard, and we love it. We executed our plan well, but sometimes we also failed to do so, but that is part of the game.
“What I liked from the boys is that whenever we got things wrong, they showed some fight and scrambled well on the defence to get the ball back. Credit to the players for staying in the fight,” Pietersen said.
“The key was our fast start and we put them under pressure from the start of both halves.”
Saturday’s URC fixtures (SA teams):
2.30pm: Lions vs Bulls; 5pm: Sharks vs Stormers
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