The Impressive Sharks
I don’t think we realise how good the Sharks were in Australia and New Zealand, winning three games in Melbourne, Christchurch and Albany, and getting a bonus point loss in Canberra.
They are not everybody’s cup of tea because their slow, cynical play is not endearing, but they have to be admired for their ability to win rugby games in adverse circumstances, some of which they create themselves.
The Shark beast – Tendai Mtawarira
In their first tour game a couple of poor refereeing decisions enabled the Rebels to get closer than they were entitled to.
In their third match the Sharks won their first game ever in Christchurch. They scored three tries to one beating the Crusaders even though they lost Deysel after he got red-carded in the 16th minute, and had only 13 men when Alberts was in the bin for ten minutes later on.
They became the first South African Super team in four years to win two games in New Zealand when they beat the Blues before they returned home. This was despite having two men in the bin during the match and the Blues scoring a try soon after they got one of them.
Were it not for poor goal kicking by Frans Steyn in their second tour game they may have won the Jake-ball contest against the Brumbies also, though the home team had their own woes slotting the ball between the posts on that wet night.
If these blokes are so hard to toss away from home, they are going to be tougher for any team traveling over there in the finals.
