Pietersen rues Sharks’ injury curse after derailed URC campaign
RUGBY
Coach JP Pietersen has had to endure a fustrating time on the injury front in his brief stint as Sharks coach that has hampered his efforts to build cohesion.
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The Sharks’ disappointing United Rugby Championship season has been shaped by one recurring problem, according to coach JP Pietersen – injuries.
Ahead of Saturday’s clash against Benetton Rugby in Durban, Pietersen admitted the Sharks never managed to establish continuity during a campaign that saw their playoff hopes fade long before the final round.
“If you don’t have players available, you don’t build cohesion, you don’t build consistency,” Pietersen told an online media conference on Thursday afternoon.
“We could never get a team together for more than four games. It was always two games max where we could be together and then an injury happens or something happens.”
The Sharks have endured one of the longest casualty lists in the competition this season, forcing constant reshuffles in both personnel and combinations. Aphele Fassi, Bongi Mbonambi, Eben Etzebeth, Ethan Hooker, Grant Williams, Jordan and Jaden Hendrikse, Phepsi Buthelezi, Luan Giliomee, Siya Masuku, Trevor Nyakane and Yaw Penxe are just some of the 21 players currently unavailable.
"If you look at our season, I think the main thing we need, if we want to compete in both competitions, is player availability. I think we struggled with it this season, so that's something we need to look at," Pietersen said.
He acknowledged that the franchise still has no definitive answer to the problem.
“If somebody knows how to avoid injuries or get less injuries in a team, I think they would be a billionaire at the moment,” he joked. “A lot of them were just unlucky injuries. Hopefully we can get better with our planning and our approach going forward.”
Despite the frustration, Pietersen believes the adversity has uncovered several bright prospects who may otherwise not have received opportunities so early in their careers.
“Look at (Zekhetelo) Siyaya, he took his opportunity. Giliomee took his opportunity,” Pietersen said of two teenage backline stars who have shone this season when handed the chance. "We would never have seen players like that if injuries didn’t happen.”
The Sharks coach also highlighted the progress of young forward Corne Rahl, who is nearing his 50th appearance for the franchise at just 23 years old.
"Also great to see that Phatu Ganyani is doing well for us too at loosehead."
With the Sharks already out of playoff contention, Pietersen said the remaining matches against Benetton and Zebre will be used to build confidence and assess younger talent ahead of next season.
“We want to finish strong and make the jersey proud,” he said.
Saturday's URC round 17 clash against Benetton kicks off at 4pm at Kings Park.