Having buried the ghosts of Ulster, the Sharks are aiming to finish their United Rugby Championship opening month on a high when they face bottom-placed Scarlets at Kings Park in their last outing before the November Test window.
Still searching for a victory after a fruitless start to the new season, the Durban side has decided not to dwell too much on this past weekend’s missed opportunities, but to rectify them on Saturday when the struggling Welsh outfit hit the shores of KwaZulu-Natal.
They had a tough week of preparation after the Ulster fallout, and according to Springbok centre André Esterhuizen, they have a couple of things to rectify before the big break.
“The key message was to get everyone on the same page so that we can play to the level we know we can,” Esterhuizen said.
“There is no use having a superstar team, but we don’t play like one, or we do not play together. Everything revolves around being a team, and we need to play like one. We need to stick together whether it is going well or badly. That is the thing about a team sport, you need to stick through the tough and the good.
“We had a difficult meeting on Monday and a hard look at ourselves. However, it is all about the next game, and we can’t change what happened. We need to rectify things this weekend against the Scarlets.”
The burly centre, who scored a sensational try against Ulster and made one of the telling contributions on defence and attack, says they are aware of what the Scarlets can bring.
Like the Sharks, the Welsh outfit is without a win; however, they are at the bottom of the official log, having yet to collect any points after their three games. The Durbanites find themselves in 14th place on three points with only a draw and three losses.
“Every time we played the Scarlets, they made the game messy. They like it loose and love to play off turnovers. It was a messy one last year with plenty of breakdown turnovers and during phase attacks.
“We expect a physical battle, which always happens when playing against a Welsh side, but they have a lot of flair too. They like playing attacking, running rugby. However, we will have to counter that and play to our strengths.
“There’s been a lot of bounce-backs throughout my career. The key message is to stick together. As soon as things go bad and you go (down) different paths and everyone wants to find a solution on their own, that is where things get even worse. It is about sticking together and following our plan.”
