URC: Sharks v Munster, Kings Park, Durban, Saturday, 3pm Irish time – Live on TG4 and Premier Sports 2
No matter what transpires in Durban on Saturday, it’s unlikely to emulate the nerve-shredding end game these teams mustered in last season’s quarter-final, a game decided on penalty kicks that went the way of the home side.
Shane Daly watched that match from home and spoke about how “unbelievably proud” he was of his team-mates in how they fought that day. While he acknowledged the acute sense of disappointment the team finished on the wrong side of the result, it hasn’t really been a discussion point for the group this week.
Instead, the focus is on tweaking patterns. He explained: “We’ve focused on a couple of areas that we felt needed to be better coming into the end of the season. It’s given us more time to focus on micro details in certain shapes. And I know the forwards have done a lot with their lineout and scrum.
“It just gives you time that you don’t normally get midseason when you’re going from game to game to focus more on what’s really not working and how you can change them. It’s been great for us and hopefully we can kind of show that in the game as well.”
The Sharks make nine changes to the side that was thumped 41-12 by the Bulls in Pretoria. Andre Esterhuizen, Makazole Mapimpi and Jordan Hendrikse remain in the starting backline while former Munster and Leinster secondrow Jason Jenkins, Vincent Tshituka and Phepsi Buthelezi retain their places in the pack. Springbok captain Siya Kolisi returns at blindside flanker.
Munster’s JJ Hanrahan. Photograph: Nick Elliott/Inpho
[ Munster aided by international and injury returnees for away trip to the SharksOpens in new window ]
Munster have a team to win this match, provided the concentration and accuracy are at the requisite levels. Daly’s reference to the set piece underlines an area in which the home side will seek to dominate, so too at the breakdown.
A key will be the performance of the halfbacks JJ Hanrahan and Ethan Coughlan, given reasonable material with which to work. Munster have oodles of footballing ability in the backline, while it’ll be instructive to note how the promising Seán Edogbo and Tom Ahern fare, whether they can bring their considerable talents to bear; so too Edwin Edogbo, Brian Gleeson and Dan Kelly from the bench.
Getting Gavin Coombes powering through tacklers, freewheeling back play, a well-thought-out kicking game and hard-nosed cohesion in defence can bring Munster the success they crave.
SHARKS: L Giliomee; Y Penxe, E Hooker, A Esterhuizen (capt), M Mapimpi; J Hendrikse, G Williams; P Ganyane, F Mbatha, H Jacobs; J Jenkins, E van Heerden; S Kolisi, V Tshituka, P Buthelezi.
Replacements: E Swart, O Nche, V Koch, C Rahl, N Hatton, B Davids, J Smith, H Kunene.
MUNSTER: M Haley; C Nash, T Farrell, A Nankivell, S Daly; JJ Hanrahan (capt), E Coughlan; M Milne, D Barron, M Ala’alatoa; J Kleyn, T Ahern; S Edogbo, J Hodnett, G Coombes.
Replacements: L Barron, J Wycherley, J Ryan, E Edogbo, F Wycherley, P Patterson, D Kelly, B Gleeson.
Referee: S Grove-White (Scotland).
[ Munster’s Niall Scannell announces he will retire at the end of the seasonOpens in new window ]