Honest talks spark Sharks’ gritty Champions Cup revival

Sharks captain Andre Esterhuizen says “honest conversations” among the players last week laid the foundation for the Sharks’ gritty victory over Saracens in a Champions Cup match at Kings Park.

Esterhuizen led from the front and was named Player of the Match as he teamed up impressively with Ethan Hooker in midfield. Hooker was not far behind his captain in the voting.

“I’m proud of the boys for the way we got stuck in. It was tough, it was tight, my voice is almost gone from screaming on defence,” Esterhuizen said, after the 28–25 win.

“Hopefully, we have turned the corner and can start building momentum. During the week, we had a lot of honest conversations.

"The players understood that they had to take accountability for everything that had happened,” explained Esterhuizen, who could not have celebrated his 100th game for the Sharks in better fashion.

“There were big changes (JP Pietersen replacing John Plumtree as head coach), so we needed to reset and have a plan for the boys to follow as a team, not as individuals,” he continued.

“Against Saracens, you could see the teamwork coming through, notably on defence, where there were quite a few instances where we just kept tackling and tackling as a unit. I’m very proud of the way we played. We have something to build on.”

The match was played in terrible conditions, with a strong wind whipping rain across the field.

“The conditions meant there were not a lot of options — you either kicked or carried. A lot of that work fell to Ethan and me. I’m glad I could do that hard work for my team.”

Esterhuizen said his Springbok hybrid role was not far from his mind.

“I was in a line-out once, and in a maul, but happily the cards stayed away and I wasn’t required to join the scrum,” he smiled.

Coach Pietersen was thrilled with the performance of his centre pairing.

“Andre and Ethan complement each other really well, defensively and on attack,” he said.

“It feels like we’ve got 10 forwards on the field. When the forwards don’t give us momentum, we can rely on Andre and Ethan to do something in the midfield and give us go-forward. Ethan is a centre — the wing is just an option. From my side, I’m very comfortable with him there.”

Pietersen also reflected on Esterhuizen’s journey.

“I remember Andre’s debut — I was playing when he came on the wing in New Zealand against the Hurricanes in 2014, and we played a lot of games together. He’s grown so much. He’s become a proper all-round player — they call him the hybrid now.

“I’m very proud of him. The way he leads, the way he talks, his decision-making on the field — I don’t need to step in much, which tells you he’s a natural leader.”

The Sharks’ hard-fought win, after a first-round defeat to Toulouse, has brought them back into Champions Cup contention, especially with their pool blown wide open by Glasgow’s surprise victory over Toulouse.

The Sharks’ remaining pool matches are away to Sale Sharks on 10 January and at home to Clermont on 17 January.

“That’s the game of rugby — it’s unpredictable,” Pietersen said of his team’s turnaround.

“There were patches where we didn’t do well, but it showed the character in the team when we kept fighting. You could see afterwards how much it meant to the players in the changing room.

“It wasn’t a perfect performance. We lost some scrum penalties, aerial battles and lineouts when we needed to score. What we can work on is winning the aerial battle.

“A win like this gives you belief, hope and lifts the energy in the environment. It gives you motivation and confidence going into the next game. We know the Bulls won’t be easy — they’re desperate as well — but what a challenge it’s going to be.”