John Plumtree gives forthright verdict on Sharks’ URC title hopes after ‘game of two halves’ against Ulster
Although they secured a crucial victory over Ulster in Saturday’s United Rugby Championship (URC) clash in Belfast, Sharks head coach John Plumtree is far from happy with his side’s performance.
Despite losing their captain, Springboks enforcer Eben Etzebeth to illness ahead of the match, the Durban-based outfit still took to the field with 11 Springboks in their starting line-up but Plumtree admitted they were not at their best.
On the back foot after poor start
The Sharks struggled to gain momentum during the game’s early stages and were trailing 19-0 by the half-hour mark after Jack Murphy, Jude Postlethwaite and Nathan Doak crossed for tries for Ulster, and Murphy also succeeded with two conversions.
The visitors finally opened their account via a Makazole Mapimpi try late in the opening half, which meant the hosts held a 19-5 lead at the interval.
The Sharks delivered an improved performance in the second half and were rewarded with further five-pointers from Emmanuel Tshituka and Jurenzo Julius while Jordan Hendrickse slotted two conversions and a late penalty, which sealed a narrow 22-19 victory for the visitors.
The win means the Sharks consolidate fourth position in the URC standings, and they have now amassed 53 points from 16 matches played – seven ahead of Cardiff, who occupy fifth place in the table.
The win means the Sharks consolidate fourth position in the URC standings, and they have now amassed 53 points from 16 matches played – seven ahead of Cardiff, who occupy fifth place in the table.
Although they showed plenty of character to launch an impressive fightback, Plumtree said there is plenty of room for improvement for his charges if they want to challenge for honours in the URC.
“We’ve got a lot of work to do if we want to win this championship,” he told reporters after the match.
‘A game of two halves’
“It was a game of two halves. We had a slow start. In the first half an hour, there were too many errors, some defensive lapses, and we didn’t build enough pressure.
“We were chasing the game from early on, but ten minutes before halftime, we started playing some footie and were pretty unlucky not to go 10-19 at the break with the TMO decision, which I thought was pretty rough.
“In the second half, we just continued where we left off. We dominated the gain line, the boys’ confidence came back up, and we scored. Then we thought we could get the game if we got the right amount of territory and possession.
“It was another great test for us in terms of our ability to hang in the fight, stay in contention for a win, and then close it out.
“Some real positives around our willingness to win close games, but we’ve got a lot of work to do if we want to win this championship, and that’s what we will endeavour to do when we get back home.”
