Well-earned break for Du Preez’s Sharks

The Durban outfit demolished the hapless Kings at a soaking wet Growthpoint Kings Parks on Saturday to get maximum log points ahead of a bye this coming weekend. While the break will be a welcome relief from a taxing seven weeks of action – it leaves the Sharks in danger of missing out on a home semi-final.

Nevertheless a full house of log points was exactly what the doctor ordered after the Sharks were pipped by the Cheetahs a week before. What was more pleasing for Sharks coach Rob du Preez was the manner in which his charges played in wet conditions.

“Obviously we were very pleased with the win and the five points but I think the way we did it was really good. We stuck to what we said we were going to do and it really worked – showing that keeping to your structures and having patience works,” du Preez said.

“We knew it was going to rain the whole week so we prepared for that.”

Lambie's return

While the likes of Curwin Bosch and Inny Radebe continued to show good form, the rugby fraternity as a whole was keenly interested in Pat Lambie’s return after a three month concussion-enduced break.

The Springbok pivot played a good half an hour and Du Preez was happy to see him back on the park after what has been a difficult period on the sidelines.

“I am very happy for Pat that he is back. It was not ideal for him to come back in conditions like this but he did well.”

The coach quashed talk of a selection headache with Lambie back in the mix – saying that he welcomed healthy competition within the squad. What he couldn’t predict was weather Lambie would be available for their final clash of the season against the Lions in two weeks time.

With the Springboks suffering their third consecutive defeat in the Rugby Championship, it seems pretty likely that national coach Allister Coetzee will call Lambie up to the squad to bring in some much needed experience and tactical awareness – an area the Boks have been struggling with.

“We need to speak to SARU and see what their plans are so I have to speak to Allister about that,” Du Preez said of Lambie’s availability.  

Du Preez will be hoping that a week’s rest will give a number of players the chance to recover from injury ahead of what will likely be a must win clash with the Lions at Ellis Park in two weeks.

“That is our last game against the Lions up there. It’s going to be a massive game but we have a bit of a break now. We will give the boys the week off and then it’s back to the drawing board,” Du Preez said.

“Those guys that had injuries like Keegan, Philip and Steph Lewies – those guys were in the starting lineup so we will select the best team for the game against the Lions and if they are ready they will have a good chance to be in the starting lineup.”

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