Sharks v Ospreys: Five takeaways as ‘real deal with real wheels’ shines along with ‘last-minute Purchase’
Sharks' Luan Giliomee in action for South Africa U20 and, inset, Ospreys' Iestyn Hopkins
After a 41-24 victory for the Sharks against the Ospreys in their United Rugby Championship (URC) clash at Kings Park on Saturday, Planet Rugby picks out five takeaways from the opening round action in Durban.
The top line
JP Pietersen’s Sharks opened the new URC campaign with a victory that was more comfortable than the five-four try count suggests.
The death row Ospreys exhibited plenty of defiance and were ultimately rewarded with a bonus point, but the home side had their wits about them, demonstrating composure through the boot of Vusi Moyo to put them out of reach at a critical point early in the second half.
What will annoy the Welsh visitors to South Africa was their slow start where they were initially unlocked from deep with the Sharks attacking off scrum ball and skipper Nick Hatton claiming the 12th-minute try.
Another set-piece attack, this time off lineout ball, was the foundation for the follow-up try 10 minutes later, Janco Purchase doing the damage in the middle and Manu Tshituka providing the finish.
Next, a scrum in their own half was the starter play for the Sharks’ third on 28 minutes, with impressive full-back Luan Giliomee running half the length of the pitch off a Jurenzo Julius pass.
Behind by 21 points, Ospreys were in dire need of nourishment and they got it, Luke Morgan getting over in the 31st minute but the Welsh winger was a mishandling culprit six minutes later, resulting in Litelihle Bester touching down for Sharks’ four-try bonus point.
That concession suggested the Ospreys were cooked, but they commendably weren’t. Another crumb materialised on the blow of half-time, Sam Parry going over on the back of the maul, and the margin was cut to 28-19 five minutes into the second half when new signing Liam Wright found himself in the clear and racing over.
The Sharks needed a nerve settler, and contact in the air from Tom Rogers allowed Moyo to strike a 52nd-minute penalty for a 12-point cushion that became 15 four minutes later when the out-half struck again after a scrummaging infringement.
A Matt Romao knock-on chalked off Suleiman Hartzenberg’s try from a cross-kick, but Giliomee chipped in with his second on 67 minutes to push the advantage out to 22 points, a gap cut to 17 through Iestyn Hopkins’ bonus try for the Ospreys following a neat break from sub Kieran Hardy.
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Real deal Giliomee
It was just last March when we first swooned over Sharks rookie Giliomee. He had scored on his URC debut versus Munster and played like a veteran who’d been around for some time.
The youngster hit the headlines again in July for being on the receiving end of a grubby headbutt from England’s Seb Kelly in Georgia at the World Rugby Junior Championships, where he finished up a title winner with South Africa.
Now back in the Sharks fold for the moment, he opened the new campaign with a two-try contribution that was launched by a world-class opener.
Latching onto a pass approaching the halfway line, Giliomee had no right to do what he did, but he left four would-be Ospreys tacklers for dead as he weaved his merry way to the try line.
Another score should have been his nine minutes later, but referee Gianluca Gnecchi ignored the clear interference from Owen Watkin when Giliomee sought to gather a kick ahead as the ball bobbled towards the line – the loose possession instead gave Bester his score.
It meant that the player of the match had to wait until the 67th minute to add his second, diving in at the corner and beating his opposite number Hopkins to the punch.
Sharks are at home again next weekend, hosting defending champions Leinster, and then have an October 10 derby at Stormers, matches where fans of the Durban franchise should savour every minute of the 20-year-old Giliomee’s involvement before his impending switch to the Bulls.
He is the real deal with real wheels, and is a lovely character as well.
Ospreys are no lost cause
You can’t but admire the stout coaching of Ospreys boss Mark Jones. He could understandably have spent the summer in Wales bemoaning his club’s uncertain future with the WRU ready to drop the guillotine on them.
Standards could have been allowed to slide but that certainly wasn’t the case going on the evidence of his team produced in Durban.
A knock-on from your skipper, Owen Watkin, under the kick-off certainly wasn’t the new season start that the Ospreys would have wanted, and they went on to find themselves gasping to escape a deep hole when trailing 0-21 after just 28 minutes.
However, what followed was the type of grittiness that can earn them a load of respect this term. Instead of rolling over and suffering a hammering, they ‘won’ the remaining part of the match 24-20.
That earned them a four-try bonus point, and it also spooked the Sharks to the extent that Moyo went for the posts twice in quick succession to calm things down and ensure there was no comeback.
Former Wallaby Wright, who scored on debut, looked like a decent piece of off-season business. There will be concerns about the reliability of the Ospreys scrum, but there was enough connection in other parts of their game to suggest they are no lost cause and will fight tooth and nail for their existence. Their attitude was great to see.
The sterner test awaiting Pietersen
There is no denying this is a huge season for the dented reputation of the Sharks. Challenge Cup winners in 2024 and URC semi-finalists the following year, their collapse last term under John Plumtree was spectacular given the resources at their disposal.
It was left to Pietersen to pick up the pieces, and he did this by steering the club to a 10th place finish, eight points off the play-offs. Now comes the trickier bit: making good his first full pre-season in charge and growing his team’s consistency.
The Sharks have a habit of being a streaky in-game team where they look excellent in parts and disparate in other sections. We saw the former at Kings Park on Saturday with the clinical way they built their early lead.
Critics expecting near perfection from the South Africans will claim that what followed was worrying, but any concern about the drop-off in performance either side of half-time must acknowledge that these Sharks didn’t panic and it was a cushioned win once they took those two penalty chances.
That composure to snap up the points on offer rather than feeling the pressure to kick to the corner and try and entertain the home fans was a positive reflection on the fledgling Pietersen era, but a sterner test awaits next weekend when they play host to Leinster.
Last-minute Purchase
This opening round URC fixture was pockmarked by handling errors from both teams, as the greasy conditions in Durban wielded a negative influence on the game’s flow.
Between those handling frustrations and other mishaps, the Sharks were credited with 21 turnovers lost versus Ospreys’ 12, but there were still plenty of examples of skilful ball transfer as the offload count was 12-2 to the adventurous South Africans.
Jaden Hendrikse had some moments of joy, most notably when he was twice involved in creating the host team’s opening try, and Purchase, the midfield rookie, needs to be commended for his execution in try No.2.
The 20-year-old wasn’t primed for his URC debut as Pietersen had chosen to start Murray Koster in a midfield partnership with the always entertaining Julius. However, a niggle forced a late change, resulting in a memorable maiden run for Purchase.
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