Sharks head coach Sean Everitt is confident that Marius Louw and Jeremy Ward can excel as a midfield partnership in captain Lukhanyo Am’s absence. DYLAN JACK reports.
The Sharks will take on Welsh side Scarlets in a Vodacom United Rugby Championship match in Durban on Friday, but will do so without Am’s services.
As part of his new contract with the Sharks, Am has been allowed a two-month sabbatical in Japan with the Kobe Steelers and is expected to return for the URC playoffs, should the Sharks finish in the competition’s top eight.
In Am’s absence, Bok skipper Siya Kolisi will captain the Sharks, while Jeremy Ward and Marius Louw will form the midfield partnership at King’s Park.
“Jeremy has played well when he has played for the Sharks, so it’s great that he can have another opportunity,” Everitt told media on Wednesday. “Marius and Jeremy have carried that responsibility in the midfield for a number of seasons now and have performed admirably. It’s a great opportunity for them to play in the URC together.
“Lukhanyo has done well in that role as a playmaker in the midfield. Marius has played really well over the last couple of weeks and we have worked hard on what we want to achieve with both of those centres that will be starting on Friday night. In saying that, playing in Durban, people tend to be a bit more conservative with ball in hand.”
Everitt revealed that Am was originally meant to head to Japan in December last year, but the Covid-19 Omicron variant scuppered those plans.
“Lukhanyo was supposed to leave us early in December and then due to the Omicron variant of Covid-19, the borders of Japan closed so he was obviously unable to go.
“So, he was always going to go. It’s just unfortunate that it comes at this time of the season when we have got these home games in a row and are sitting on eighth on the log, that he has to go. But it is a deal we have signed with him and we must honour it. There are no hard feelings between the two of us at all.”
As a boost, the Sharks are expecting to welcome Ben Tapuai back to full fitness in the URC after he gets a Currie Cup game under his belt.
“We have missed Ben’s experience that he brought to the table in the few games he has played for us. Ben is on his way back to full recovery. He has trained fully with the team this week and will be in action in the Currie Cup next Wednesday.”
Everitt said the Sharks are very excited for the much-anticipated stretch of games at home against northern-hemisphere oppositions, but they are expecting a tough test against Scarlets.
“Very much so, there is talk of it. I did say to the team on Monday that people have been hyping it up for quite a while now, that these overseas teams are coming to South Africa. Now what we have to do is put the words into action. That’s important for us, to put in good performances at home. There’s no use in just talking about it.
“Scarlets had a great win on Saturday against a top-three team in Glasgow. We are wary of what they can bring. We need to perform to get the support back and when the stadiums open, we want to be playing well. They are a very attack-oriented team, although they do kick a lot as well. The reason why they kick so much is so that they can get the ball back to attack.”
Photo: Steve Haag/Gallo Images
