With Eben Etzebeth’s return delayed and Aphelele Fassi also injured, Sharks head coach John Plumtree has relied on players available to beat Toulouse.
The Sharks have ironed out their scrum, are confident of their line-outs without Eben Etzebeth and believe the Hendrikse brothers will be able to shut down Antoine Dupont come their Champions Cup match against French giants Toulouse at Kings Park Stadium on Saturday (kick-off 5.15pm).
Sharks head coach John Plumtree told media on Friday that though they will be without Springbok lock Eben Etzebeth yet again, their line-outs should prove consistent with second rowers Corne Rahl and Jason Jenkins.
“Corne is our fourth or fifth lock so he must have been dreaming of playing against Toulouse,” Plumtree said.
“He has a great opportunity to measure himself against a solid pack.”
Regarding the injuries, while Etzebeth was expected to be ready for the game after his concussion test, he suffered a headache in training and coaches decided to be cautious.
Springbok speedster Makazole Mapimpi is back while Hakeem Kunene plays at fullback for the injured Aphelele Fassi, who Plumtree said had ankle surgery on Friday.
Assessments will be done to determine how far he is from being ready to play, while centre Andre Esterhuizen could be out for three months for his knee injury.
Sharks flyer Lukhanyo Am will only be ready to play in a week or two as his arm recovers. Scrumhalf Grant Williams misses out due to the loss of his grandmother.
Sharks brothers backed to shut down Dupont
Jaden Hendrikse, Williams’ replacement during injury, received high praise from Plumtree as the coach backed his form and that of his brother Jordan at flyhalf to counter anything Toulouse’s number nine and 10 could do.
“This is a great opportunity for Jaden to shine again. Keeping a guy like Dupont quiet is a real challenge. Some of the best teams in world haven’t been able to do that,” Plumtree said of the 2024 World Rugby Sevens Player of the Year and French captain.
The 28-year-old scrumhalf is lightning-quick on the ball, creating many openings to put his side ahead with his clever plays.
The match in Durban will be the first time he has featured in the southern hemisphere in eight years.
“The Hendrikse brothers have been playing well together and I didn’t want to break that combo with my changes,” Plumtree explained when asked why Jordan did not replace Fassi at the back.
“Hakeem has played fullback at all age-grade rugby. He is a confident player.”
Bongi Mbonambi, returning from injury, will join the scrum as hooker. He and fellow Springboks Ox Nche and Vincent Koch will face Toulouse and French internationals Cyril Baille and Julien Marchand.
Plumtree relies on Kings Park faithful
“Every part of our game has to be efficient,” Plumtree added. “In set pieces and attack we have got to build pressure and then capitalise. When it turns around we have to absorb that pressure.”
Plumtree said the Sharks home crowd will be invaluable as they host the Champions Cup title holders.
“The boys love playing in front of their home fans. The feedback I’ve received is people are enjoying our style. I hope the crowd will get behind us and help get our boys home.”
As of Friday afternoon, over 22 000 tickets have been sold.
