News

Terblanche to skipper Sharks

July 14 2009

Sharks veteran Stefan Terblanche has been handed the captaincy in place of injury victim Johann Muller for Friday's Currie Cup fixture against Boland.

The former Springbok full-back takes the place of his wounded team-mate after the lock suffered a broken arm in defeat to Western Province last Saturday.

But despite going down in their Cape Town opener, coach John Plumtree admits there are just a few creases to iron out this week in Durban if they are to get their title defence up and running.

"We conceded too many penalties in our own half and Willem de Waal kicked them, we also conceded soft points in the first minute and a try when we were yellow carded but other than that, there wasn't too much in it really," he said.

"Discipline also let us down when we didn't need to concede penalties at breakdowns, and if you concede penalties in your own half against any Currie Cup teams with good kickers, you will concede three points."

Regarding the injury to his starting captain, Plumtree paid truibute to Muller in a loss that he views as bigger than many would imagine.

"He is really important to the team, not only in terms of his leadership but what he provides around the field in intensity and work at the breakdown, also his defence and so on, so we'll have to work really hard that's all," he continued, with Albert van den Berg now expected to start alongside Steven Sykes.

"The boys know what they need to do, we've spoken about responsibility, it's a pressure game and everyone needs to stand up. They're here as professional rugby players and have a responsibility."