After a week’s bye, Cell C Sharks Under 20s are back in action in the 2022 SA Rugby Under 20 Championship as they take on the Blue Bulls Under 20s in Pretoria on Saturday afternoon.
Having gone down narrowly to Western Province in their opening match, head coach Mike Vowles felt it was a game they should have won, a drop-goal deciding matters in a two try apiece clash.
“We were obviously very disappointed about the result against Western Province, it was a game we felt we lost, rather than Province winning. We had lots of opportunities that we didn’t capitalise on and it wasn’t a performance we, as a team, accept; it was well below par.
“A lot of time has been spent on finding solutions and fixing the areas we needed to and the players had a good, hard look at themselves in terms of their performance and we’re now itching to get back on the park and excited about the prospect of playing the Bulls.”
The Bulls had a narrow one point loss to Province in their last match and both sides will feel equally aggrieved as they come into this match looking to right matters.
“We had a bye last week which allowed the boys to clear their heads and restore their energy and this week preparation has gone really well,” Vowles added.
“The players are really keen to rectify their performance and there’s no better opportunity than against a team like the Bulls. We expect them to be physical although they’ve changed their style and tend to move the ball around, so we know what to expect and we’ve prepared well.
“The guys have really stood up in the course of training and they’re very keen to put in a strong performance. We still see ourselves very much in this competition and we want to put our hands up to make a statement going forward.”
Saturday’s clash kicks off at 1.30pm.
Cell C Sharks Under 20s
1. Abraham Reyneke
2. Jordan McLoughlin
3. Munashe Mhere
4. Andrew Beyrooti
5. Cornelius Rahl (c)
6. Damon Royle
7. Enos Ndiao
8. Nicholas Hatton
9. Bradley Davids
10. Jean Smith
11. Siviwe Zondani
12. Brandon Wilkie
13. Hakeem kunene
14. Curwin Gertse
15. Matthew Jacobs
Replacements
16. Jacques Marais
17. Patu Ganyane
18. Dian Heunis
19. Coetzee Le Roux
20. Renzo du Plessis
21. Joshua Miller
22. Luca Ribbens
23. Lloyd Koster