Thomas du Toit is relishing the challenge of driving the Cell C Sharks back to winning ways in a high-stakes, high-altitude Vodacom United Rugby Championship quarter-final clash at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.
“We live for moments like this,” the 13-cap Springbok prop said. “When your back is on the ropes there’s only one way and that’s to fight your way out of it. I think that’s a good place to be in and a good mentality to have.”
Fourth is a better place to be for the Sharks but they returned to Durban from Belfast in fifth position after ending the regular season with a 24-21 loss against Ulster. Instead of opening up Hollywoodbets Kings Park for a home playoff match, Du Toit and his teammates will instead pack a light travel bag for the flight to Pretoria where they will battle the Vodacom Bulls for a ticket to the semi-finals.
The Sharks have won both of the first two URC meetings between these teams, beating their Highveld rivals 30-16 in Durban in December and then 29-22 at Loftus Versfeld in the February return match.
However, prior to sweeping the Bulls this season, the Sharks had suffered a string of gruesome losses in Pretoria. They followed up a 41-14 reverse in 2020 Super Rugby Unlocked with a 37-14 Super Rugby setback in March of 2021 and, two months later, a 43-9 drubbing in the Rainbow Cup.
“That last one at Loftus was the first time we’ve won there in a while,” said Du Toit. “It gives you a certain level of confidence going there, knowing that, yes, the altitude makes a difference, but we’ve overcome it.
“You mustn’t underestimate how difficult it is going to Loftus. For a lot of people, they will be the favourites and we recognise that, but it does put a target on their backs.”
There are few with a broader back than Du Toit who, at 135kg, is a sight to behold trundling across the pitch and living up to his nickname ‘Tank’.
The Sharks set piece is docked to the 27-year-old scrum cleat as Du Toit has started in every one of the team’s 18 matches this season. With the solemnity that only a tighthead prop can convey about the scrum, Du Toit has singled out the set piece as pivotal for the quarter-final.
“The scrums play a big role and the Bulls have always got a very good set piece. We’ve got some good combinations going in the front row, we’re very much in sync and the scrums will show that.
“The threat from the Bulls is the unpredictability that they’ve added to their game. They have been putting some arrows in their quiver, playing off mauls and scrums, taking opportunities when it’s on in their 22, and when they get momentum they play on top of momentum.”
Predicting the results of playoff matches is risky business for the bookmakers who have installed the Bulls as favourites to win the quarter-final, intensifying the pressure on the Sharks to win a third consecutive derby.
“Subconsciously, playing in a quarter-final definitely changes the game for every player. You’re lying to yourself if you say that there isn’t a certain level of pressure that you put on yourself. But I think that’s a good thing going into a game like this. It’s do or die.”
ROAD TO THE PLAYOFFS: SHARKS (5TH)
SEASON SNAPSHOT
The Sharks have provided the ultimate roller-0coaster ride in the first season of the URC. Just when they seem unstoppable, they stumble, and just when they get written off, they stand tallest.
There is disappointment in Durban that the Sharks this weekend are not hosting a quarter-final after entering the 18th and final round of the league leading the South African Shield. A combination of defeat, in Belfast, by Ulster, and wins for the DHL Stormers and Bulls in Wales, meant a third-place finish in SA, but the fifth-place overall finish meant they didn’t have to travel overseas for the first round of playoff matches.
The Sharks, like their South African counterparts, struggled in the first month of the league, playing away from home and without their current Springboks, which include 2019 World Cup-winning captain Siya Kolisi, midfielder Lukhanyo Am, prop Thomas du Toit and hooker Bongi Mbonambi. Another World Cup-winning squad member, wing Sbu Nkosi, also struggled with injury.
The indifferent start meant playing catch up, but the Sharks enjoyed a purple patch in Durban. They have also lost just one and drawn one of the six matches they played against South African opposition in the URC. The home draw and away defeat was against the Stormers.
STAR PERFORMER
Fullback Aphelele Fassi is a gem of a player, who makes the ticket price seem secondary.
Fassi spent six months without a game while touring with the Springboks in the second half of 2021 and he also suffered the most irritating of injury setbacks during the URC in 2022, but when he played he rocked the league.
Fassi, at his best, is sensational. He has X factor, can turn a half chance into five points and is constantly a menace with ball in hand.
The Sharks, with Fassi, at fullback, are always in with a chance of beating anyone.
DECISIVE WIN
In the context of the season the Sharks biggest win was going to Loftus Versfeld and beating the Bulls 29-22 in February. It meant they had completed the double against South Africa’s premier domestic team, having won the first round in Durban in December 2021.
Away wins define title-winning campaigns and the Sharks have shown they can win away from home and, most significantly, they can win at Loftus, where they play the Bulls on Saturday afternoon.
NEXT:
Quarter-final vs Bulls at Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria (4 June)
