Sharks coach praises 80 minute performance in narrow win over Bulls

The match looked set to end in a draw as Bulls flyhalf Morne Steyn lined up a penalty on the stroke of the full time hooter - but the Springbok veteran’s shot drifted wide to give the Sharks a hard fought victory.

Having lost their last two matches against the Bulls, the Sharks finally got one back over the men from Pretoria and in doing so climbed up to second on the Currie Cup table with a game in hand. The Bull are still top of the log and will undoubtedly look to bounce back next week and continue their dominance in the competition.

Striving for consistency

In the build up to the clash in Durban last week, Everitt had spoken of his desire to see his players produce a full 80 minute performance. The Sharks boss felt that the team had not quite hit their straps in the Currie Cup and was hoping to see some consistency against the Bulls.

There was not much between the two teams in Durban on Saturday afternoon, with the Sharks in particular making a marked improvement at the set pieces against the Bulls. The forward battle had been one they’d lost in their last two encounters with the Pretoria outfit, but the Sharks finally reached parity with their opponents.

“The guys put in a great performance and a massive improvement on what we have delivered this year. We said we need to improve our performance over the 80 minute period and obviously we took ascendancy in the game in the last 5 minutes. Unfortunately for the Bulls and Morne he missed that kick to draw the game, but at the end of the day I think we deserved to win this one,” Everitt said.

“The last time we played at Loftus our lineout didn’t function well at all and we couldn’t get our hands on the ball because of that. We’ve worked hard on that and hats off to the forwards for taking on the challenge. We knew that if we could get parity with the Bulls we’d be in with a shout, the pack was outstanding in how they executed our lineouts and set piece but more importantly in managing to stop their mauls.”

Building confidence

The result has elevated the Sharks' position on the Currie Cup log and the Durban outfit also has a game in hand which could help their hopes of making the playoffs early next year. Everitt believes that the victory over the form side in competition will help boost their confidence with some tough matches on the road up ahead.

“Winning home games is really important for us and I am just happy that we’ve maintained a 100 percent record at home. It was one of our goals at the beginning of the season to make Kings Park our fortress,” Everitt said.

The challenge is now on the road. In the beginning of the year winning three out of four on tour will certainly help with confidence going to Ellis Park. The Lions are a tough team at home and I think they’re playing the best rugby they have this year.”

The Sharks have back-to-back away fixtures in the Currie Cup, starting with a clash against the Lions in Johannesburg next weekend.