Sharks draw confidence from Loftus wins ahead of URC semi-final

The Sharks will have no fear when they travel to Loftus Versfeld for the United Rugby Championship (URC) semi-final on Saturday, thanks to their happy memories of winning their last two matches at the Bulls’ fortress.

In sport, it can be argued that what happened in the past often has little bearing on the present. However, the collective memory banks at the Sharks include a URC win in Pretoria in February and a heroic Currie Cup victory last September.

The latter win was a significant psychological blow to the Bulls, who had set their sights on winning the Currie Cup. Instead, they were beaten on home turf by a Sharks side that went on to clinch the trophy a week later at Ellis Park, against the luckless Lions.

This week’s URC semi-final is not comparable to an international team travelling to Eden Park in Auckland, where the All Blacks have remained unbeaten for 100 games. That is a proper mental obstacle for visiting teams. In contrast, most of the Sharks team travelling to Loftus featured in that bizarre Currie Cup win late last year.

It was big man Trevor Nyakane who scored a try deep into extra time to force a 40-40 draw.

The Sharks progressed to the final on the technicality that they had scored six tries to the Bulls’ four. Nyakane — still at the Sharks but currently recovering from a long-term injury — never scored a try in his three seasons at the Bulls, but crossed the line in that match to silence Loftus. His famous post-match dance jig added insult to injury.

After securing the Currie Cup title, the Sharks went on to win the Challenge Cup. Head coach John Plumtree later admitted that the season-defining moment for his team was the Currie Cup victory at Loftus, where they were reduced to 12 players at one point.

That match built to a dramatic final quarter, with the home team laying siege to the Sharks’ 22. The pressure caused the Sharks to repeatedly infringe, resulting in a spate of yellow cards. Yet the Bulls somehow failed to land the knockout blow.

Incredibly, a similar scenario played out in February, when a Sharks team again reduced to 12 men for a period beat the Bulls 29–19 in a URC fixture. It was a stretch the Sharks will remember fondly.

They played expansive, free-flowing rugby and scored multi-phase tries through Ethan Hooker, Tino Mavesere and Yaw Penxe. They repeatedly scored against the run of play, frustrating a Bulls side that managed just two tries, both by hooker Johan Grobbelaar.

Two months earlier, on December 21, the Sharks stole a late 20–17 win at Kings Park. The Bulls had dominated most of the match, but the Sharks held firm, and a strong defensive display saw them edge the contest—to the Bulls’ disbelief.

Of course, history never guarantees future success. But it certainly helps the Sharks that they have enjoyed psychologically rewarding recent victories against the Bulls, while the hosts on Saturday afternoon might just harbour a few doubts of their own.