The last time the Hollywoodbets Sharks and Munster met at Hollywoodbets Kings Park, it was the Durban side that prevailed after an extra-time Vodacom United Rugby Championship knock-out game and a dramatic penalty shoot-out.
What stands out for Head coach JP Pietersen is that the game was a tight, see-sawing affair.
“At one point we felt we were comfortably ahead, then they showed how good their team culture is, they always fight back, and their performance showed that they never give up,” he admitted.
“It’s going to be similar this time, a real tough contest and they’ll be motivated to come here and prove a point.”
Although much is made of the race for top eight positions, for the Hollywoodbets Sharks, this match is all that matters right at this minute.
“Our focus is only on Munster, we want to put in a good performance in front of our home fans, we’ll be giving it everything.
“It’s good to be playing at Hollywoodbets Kings Park, some of our players are coming back from a rest and from injury, so I think we can put in a good team performance, one that makes the fans happy.”
Pietersen confirmed that fullback Aphelele Fassi went for a shoulder op and he’s out for three months. In his place comes Luan Giliomee, a rising star on the South African rugby landscape.
“We have a lot of injuries in the backline, Luan is a talented kid and this is a great opportunity for him to showcase what he’s got. He’s done well with the Blitzboks and SA Under 21s and it’s good for us to also see what our future is looking like, I’m sure he’ll do a great job.
“He’s a very talented player who can also feature at scrumhalf and flyhalf. He has vision and understands the game well and grew up in a rugby family. He’s good under the high ball and brings an effective kicking game and hopefully everything goes well. He’s a good kid and I’m super excited for him. Hopefully he puts in a solid performance and a few nice touches too.”
Rotational changes to the team, particularly in the front row, were all about how the team finishes the game, against a quality side like Munster. “Ox Nche and Vincent Koch bring experience off the bench to close the game out, and Phatu Ganyane has played well, he scrummed nicely against Springboks in the DHL Stormers, Lions and Vodacom Bulls games, so he deserved a start.
“Hopefully he can continue growing in that position.”