Scrumhalf Grant Williams played a big role in the Sharks’ second victory over the Stormers on Saturday at Kings Park. When the Sharks were trailing against the Stormers at halftime on Saturday in Durban, head coach JP Pietersen challenged his team to stand up without relying too much on captain André Esterhuizen. They embraced that challenge and fought back first from a 17-14 deficit and then a 24-14 one to eventually seal the second United Rugby Championship (URC) derby against the Stormers 36-24 for a famous double victory over the Cape side.
It is the first time the Durbanites beat the Stormers twice in the URC, and the back-to- back victories propelled them into the top ten on the official log. Pietersen praised Esterhuizen for how he stood up against the Stormers again and how he led the side to the famous victory. “But I think today wasn’t just André, it was a group performance,” Pietersen proclaimed.
“We were under the pump twice, and the group pulled together nicely. Phepsi (Buthelezi) was good when we were down, Emile (Van Heerden, lock) was good, and Vincent Koch came on and did his thing. “At halftime, I asked the boys if we could do a collective performance and not just have André be the one who stands up and does it for us.
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There are a lot of guys who put up their hands. Look at Jaco Williams making an aimless chase, he didn’t have to chase that ball to behind the try line and could’ve just stopped. “Then, to get a try from that by dotting it down, it shows what it means to the group, and we do care for each other.” The Sharks picked up a full house of 10 points against the Stormers after the two matches, while they kept the Cape side from collecting any points.
With two more South African derbies to play, the Sharks will go into the Six Nations break with valuable momentum. Pietersen will give his troops a break over the next 10 days before they return to training for their next two games against the Lions (21 February) and Bulls (28 February) at Ellis Park and Loftus Versfeld, respectively.
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