With two rounds remaining in this year’s Vodacom United Rugby Championship, the Cell C Sharks are well-placed for a quarter-final, and a home one isn’t out of the question either.
It’s going to take a massive effort, but that’s not an alien concept to the Cell C Sharks who have been picking up log points regularly, including a five pointer over the log leaders this past weekend.
This weekend Connacht visit Hollywoodbets Kings Park in the penultimate round of the competition, followed by a three week break until their final pool match, against Munster.
This clash offers the Cell C Sharks the opportunity to really throw everything at their opponents, secure in the knowledge that there is plenty of time to rest and recover.
“We’re not aiming to be in the top eight, we’re looking for a home quarter-final and we’re treating each game as if it’s our last game, so the focus on each game is massive, we’re treating each one like a final,” explains Cell C Sharks captain Thomas du Toit.
“There’s no underestimating the value of a home quarter-final and we’re absolutely playing for that.”
How far this competition has come. In the opening four rounds, when the South African teams had registered only a handful of wins collectively while on tour, things looked a bit dire. But now, with the Cell C Sharks, DHL Stormers and Vodacom Bulls all enjoying top 8 status, the tournament has taken on a completely different complexion.
“We all felt like we got a bit of a punch in the face when the competition started and we didn’t really know what to expect, but now that we’ve sussed things out, it seems like most teams have turned the tide, we’re sticking to our guns and to what we as South Africans do well and they have to deal with that.”
Speaking about the captaincy, he explains that, “I wouldn’t say I’m the main oke here, my title has just changed. All along I was a tighthead prop, now I’m a tighthead with a little ‘c’ next to my name. Not a lot has changed, I definitely talk a lot more in team meetings, but not necessarily more on the field.
“The way I handle myself, the referee, the players hasn’t changed a lot, there’s just a title to the name and in a team lie ours, there are so many talented young, but already experienced leaders, so my job is quite easy. I just tell the ref if we’re going to poles or the sideline.”
As part of a dominant forward effort, he’s proud of what the pack have achieved although there was a time when the set-piece came in for criticism. But the forward effort has been a revelation this season. He admits that there were a lot of things they needed to work on, and they have.
“A lot of credit must go to our coaches,” he says. “They’ve simplified a lot of what we do, our lineouts and scrum have been made easy and we’re thriving. We’re training hard, we aren’t talking about making it right, we’re working to make it right. Hopefully we can continue taking forward steps.”
There were also issues around discipline and the penalty count, but this too is something that has been addressed and fixed.
“It’s all part of the natural progression of a team. We’re a team that enjoys playing a lot of rugby, and when you do, there’s a good chance of giving away penalties because the guys are excited and sometimes go off plan. But it’s something we are keeping within the structure we need.”