JP Pietersen excited about chance to reverse Sharks’ fortunes against Lions at Ellis Park

Sharks head coach JP Pietersen preparing for the Lions with Vincent Tshituka at the back set to lead the Durbanites at Ellis Park. Atthe Sharksteam announcement press conference on Thursday,JP Pietersenquickly brushed off talk about his recent appointment as head coach and said the more important matter is beatingthe Lionsat Ellis Park on Saturday (2pm kick-off). “Nothing much has changed (since his status as head coach changed from interim to permanent on Wednesday),” he said.

“There have been some congratulations, but we have a big game this week; the focus is on getting a positive result, not on me.” Pietersen said that after the high of back-to-back defeats of the Stormers, the players took a break before reconvening for the fresh challenge of away SA Derbies against the Lions and the Bulls. “The excitement is in the challenge of changing our fortunes at Ellis Park,” he said. “We are aware of our lack of success up there in recent times.

It is something we can turn around. “The main focus is on how we can get better under pressure and on starting better after a poor start against the Lions in Durban (on January 3), which cost us the match,” the coach added. “It is important to get the balance right between enjoying the game and getting the technical side right.

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We want to be focused but not stressed when we take the field at Ellis Park.” With several key players resting in Durban because of Springbok protocols, Pietersen said this game gives him an important opportunity to gauge the capability of his greater squad. “It gives you that opportunity to see if the guys in between — those in transition from juniors to seniors, or seniors who haven’t had enough game time – are improving week by week even if they are not always playing,” Pietersen said. “It’s a great chance for some of them to put up their hands because in the background, they have kept working hard.

“In some positions, we want to see if young talent can make a statement. We know what we have got in guys like Andre Esterhuizen and Siya Kolisi… We want to see what we have in the guys standing in.” A prime example is 21-year-old former Junior Springbok Thomas Dyer. He is standing in for another Hilton College old boy, Nick Hatton, who is injured. Dyer, a formidable fellow at 1.96m and 115kg, played lock for the SA Under-20 team in 2023 and 2024 but is now a No 8.

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