Sharks to fight for every inch against Ulster

Published on

Siya Kolisi has identified the gainline battle as one the Cell C Sharks must win when the Durbanites host Ulster in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship on Saturday.

Inspired by a Man of the Match performance on debut from Eben Etzebeth, the Sharks demolished Glasgow Warriors at Kings Park last week.

The towering lock dominated in the lineouts and open play in the 40-12 bonus-point victory, but Bok skipper and teammate Kolisi says it will take all-round physicality to overpower an Ulster side boasting grizzly SA No 8 Duane Vermeulen.

“The set piece is going to be very important because Ulster have a strong pack and they use their maul effectively,” said Kolisi, who will start his first URC game of the season, after playing off the bench against Glasgow.

MORE: Powell: Continuity key for Sharks

“They also target the scrum as an area to force penalties and it’s somewhere we do want to improve. We gave away one penalty, got one back and earned a tighthead last week, so we’re going to have to be really strong in the scrums and mauls. They’re also very good at the breakdown with their loose forwards.

“In general, they’re a gainline team, they want to get over the gainline, so the contact area is going to be important.”

He added: “But we have a good pack, too, experienced guys who know they need to stand up each weekend. We know there’s no place to hide, so we need to go flat out and every one of us needs to make sure he’s up for the challenge and set the standard from the word go.

“We need to manage things well and play in the right areas, but when there are opportunities, we are definitely going to go for it.”

ALSO: Siya starts for Bok-powered Sharks

Photo: Steve Haag/INPHO/Shutterstock/BackpagePix

Post by

Devin Hermanus