Frans Steyn, Bambie and Du Toit- all out of the Reds Game next week

Sharks website-15 July 2012 (11:03) - After finishing in sixth position on the combined Vodacom Super Rugby log, The Sharks are through to the Finals Series and will play the third-placed Reds in Brisbane on Saturday in the first Qualifier.

With Patrick Lambie and Pieter-Steph du Toit both picking up recurring ankle injuries in Saturday evening's 34-15 victory over the Cheetahs, the pair will unfortunately not be making the trip to Australia and Sharks coach John Plumtree confirmed after the match that Frans Steyn would not be on the plane either, not having fulfilled the SANZAR criteria to play in the Finals Series after only appearing in two pool matches for The Sharks.

With a limit of 24 players allowed to travel, The Sharks touring squad will comprise 13 forwards and 11 backs:

1. ALBERTS, Willem
2. BOSMAN, Meyer 
3. BOTES, Jacques
4. BRESLER, Anton
5. BURDEN, Craig
6. COETZEE, Marcell
7. DANIEL, Keegan
8. DU PLESSIS, Bismarck
9. DU PLESSIS, Jannie
10. HERBST, Wiehahn
11. JORDAAN, Paul
12. KANKOWSKI, Ryan
13. LUDIK, Louis
14. MARAIS, Jandre
15. McLEOD, Charl
16. MICHALAK, Frederic
17. MTAWARIRA, Tendai
18. MVOVO, Lwazi
19. NDUNGANE, Odwa
20. PIETERSEN, JP
21. REINACH, Cobus
22. SYKES, Steven
23. VILJOEN, Riaan
24. WHITEHEAD, Tim

Looks like John Plumtree was playing injured players. At least Alberts is fine. He should be at Lock to keep the current loose forward combination intact. 

Where is Diesel- he could be on the bench as lock and loose forward cover- Not to bright but is strong as an ox.

Steph du Toit isn't Bambie?

 No Steph Du Toit is Bambies rag doll until he puts on some weight. 

well we will see how sanzar by passes the citing rules to let fade cooper play this weekend. if gets off this scot free (what he will) then it just once again shows how SA teams are getting shafted by sanzar.

Well Mucher I do take issue with that because QLD was soooo screwed over re Digby tackle this year 5weeks for a good tackle...... not dangerous at all vs the sharks....

I think QC will get suspended so will definitely hurt the Reds but I think @ home they will still have too much firepower for sharks.... but never know.

What an amazing outcome that they actually made it....

Redsman

I don't think that Cooper - if not suspended - is going to make too much of a difference to the outcome of the game against the Sharks.   Both sides this year had injury problems - so in that respect I think that the call is equal.  Even if Cooper plays the difference would lie in the quality balls he gets and the pressure imposed on him.   

The Reds this year had a major problem against SA teams and lost against the Bulls, Sharks and Stormers (the latter game at home).   The problem here is forward play and that is where they would be at a disadvantage.   The Sherks had problems early in the season. - but except for an aberration against the Lions - in the last two weeks they have played exceptional rugby.   

The Sharks have five of the best forwards in world rugby today available against the Reds.   Those are the two of the  loosies, the props and the hooker.   They will play Daniel as the other loosie and the two locks are average players - but can also perform well.

In the backline the absence of Francois Steyn will be felt and also that of Lambie.   My guess is that they will play Ludik at full back and move Whitehead to 12.  They will play Jordaan at 13.

Now lets anaylse the Sharks backline.   Michalak is an exceptional flyhalf for France on international level.   Whitehead is solid - nothing to scream about.   Jordaan is an exceptionally gifted player at 13 - although still only 20 years of age.   Pietersen is an international player with exxceptional talents - probaly one of the best on international level today - and Mvovo is far above average.  Ludik was outstanding in the absence of Lambie in recent games.   The weak spot in the backline is McCleod and the Reds should try and neutralize him.   All-in-all not a brilliant backline - yet they could be dangerous - especially Pietersen, Jordaan and Michalak.

I do believe the Reds has one other problem They struggled badly against the top SA teams and to my mind the best SA team at this stage of the competition is in fact the Sharks.

I give the Reds a 30% chance of beating the in form Sharks team based on the overall performances of the teams concerned especially during the latter of the competition.

Word is Kaplan is ref - so your 30% chance will surely rest upon him otherwise Id say reds are 95% chance even without cooper.

Sharks have travel then front up to hostile 45K crowd which let me tell you is deafening when the reds score.

To add to that the reds fwd pack - you may deem soft but we'll see......

Quietly confident here - with exception that Shawwks have good ol Kaplan..................................................... couple of steps below bryce frankly.

Redsman...What makes you think so highly of the Reds?? Lets take a step back here. SA refs are often promoted to the bigger games because they are, infact, the only refs in the world that remain neutral and even a little harder on the SA sides just to prove their fairness. Now, in terms of the very average Reds in the very average Aussie conference. Its like schoolboy rugby. Reds only managed 58 points in the easiest conference by far..Reds have 3 great players. Cooper, Horwill and Genia. 2 of those are not playing which makes them about as scary as a 90 year old kick boxer. Cooper is 1 of those players that either amazing or dull. No happy medium. The Sharks forwards will watch him and Genia very closely, just like the world cup quarter where Cooper played like a knob..We all know SA lost the game buy were not beaten..Thanks Bryce! Too much pressure from Daniel and Marcell Coetzee and Cooper will be a weak link... I am very confident the Sharks can have a big win here. We will miss Frans Steyn and his go forward power but Harris is hardly gona knock anyone back in the tackle...Sharks 13+... Clevermike was being generous with a 30% chance to the Reds...Cooper is out and so is Steyn..We will call it even. Only difference is with Steyn you know what you gona get..With Cooper, it could actually work in the Sharks favour if he plays!

Redsman

I have no problem with kaplan being the referee.  All referees make mistakes - and he will make one or two - but he is fair and would rather be more lenient to foreign than SA teams.   Kaplan is not a crook and incompetent like Bryce Lawrence.   There is no comparison between Kaplan and Lawrence - the latter was kicked out of the test panel for very reason that he is in fact incompetent.   The top referees in world rugby today are all South African - and that is a fact.

Boklogic I would add Digby Ione as a class player for the reds

What is it with you ozzies and Jonathan Kaplan? He's been the best referee for the past decade and always gets the high profile games because those in the know recognise this and hence the just rewards, unlike the jokers from Aus, ie Stu Dick and co. Kaplan knows the law and interprets it 100% correctly which shocks you guys because of your weak scrums, forward passes, breakdown cheats and offside play. You are already bleating before the game even kicked off...geez, you ozzies are the world's premier whingers!!

kaplan does not love the sharks so i cant see why the aussies are so up and arms to be honest.

Kaplan will not be biased. He can make mistakes like any ref but if anythig he sometimes favours foreign side.

I recall how he repeatedly warned the abs in a test down under against the Boks that he would send off an ab if they continued their nonsese but never did.

Nevertheless he is a fair competent ref  and the sharks and the  reds can expect a fair deal. Pyper will also give both Bulle and crusties a fair deal. Great that we will not see bent refs in action.

i have seen kaplan ref a few shockers myself. i reckon kaplan has not received and xmas cards then he awarded that rather dodge try in there six nations game a while back.

but comparing him to bryce ?????? wow that is the ultimate insult. its worse beiing compared to hitler and stalin.

he tends to over ref the SA teams where he is involved with or that is what i can gather at least. just hope he has a decent game on saterday then

Beeno, you absolutely correct. Digby Ioane is a good player...When he hangs on to the ball. I was going to put him in but to mention him and great is a big call. He loses a lot of ball in contact and comes up with some awesome cold drops at crucial times. Heres to hoping his reputation as butter fingers precedes him this weekend. Ball in hand though and he is a damn fine finisher. In terms of Kaplan. A few of the comments above are very true. SA refs tend to be harder on SA teams. Its almost as though they are proving their un-bias (if you can say that) but it can at times hurt the SA teams but I have full faith Kaplan will blow the game fairly and the better team will win.

1st if all @ Green - everyone knows kiwis are the worlds biggest whingers its just a neutral ref would take all this crap out of the picture altogether... thats all Im saying. And... Kaplan has robbed many an aussie team in the past....

RE Reds only having 3/4 world class players - OK think what you like but they are a above average / reasonable group of players that are definitely a good TEAM.... on paper Tahs are prbly Aussies best and look where they finished.

Sharks on paper - yeah maybe better we'll see....

Re conference points 58 - REds had a bad year but have only just clicked into gear - remember though they still won more game than the sharks - forget the bonus points. And for the record the Lions arent the toughest of competitors either....

Anyway one thing you saffas never lack is self-confidence which is admirable and as a team I like the Sharks so welcome to the stadium us locals refer to as the 'cauldron'........... more of a Rugby League terminology but one thing I can attest to is that it is a very very energy charged venue -

Redaman

I do rate the Reds as a good team - pity about Horwill and Cooper being out.   Genia is definitely the best scrummie in the world at present - so he is a huge plus factor.  Ioane is also very good.    The Reds have had a terrible year of injuries to their players - but I still think that the Sharks have too many guns in their arsenal - despite the issue of jet lag.   They normally travel well and that could be the difference.   By the way - the weather of Brisbane and Durban is very similar - although for the past few days it was bloody cold here.  

The Sharks also came good in their last two games - won both with 4-try bonus points - so I think the situation in that regard is equal. 

There are two issues here - and those are over-confidence and uderrating of opposition.   This can often lead to disaster - such as happened in the Sharks-Lions game.   They thought by only arriving at the venue would gaurantee them a win - and we all know the result.   Same happened in the Rebel-Cruisader game.  A game like on Saturday is often determined by the strength of conviction by the winning team - ie their will to win.  That should not be absent ibn the case of both teams.

The game would be interesting to watch - but I think ultimately the Sharks would win.   However, there has been numerous upsets in the Super 15 series this year and that made the competition that much more interesting.

What went wrong with the Waratahs this year - they were poor and their star players under-performed?   Not a good sign for the Wallabies though.

LMFAO, kiwis are worlds biggest whingers???
funny how this blog is nothing but aussies whinging about saffa refs and saffas moaning about bryce lawrence and whinging aussies, bawahahahahahaahahahaha.

@bryce lawrence,

please please please for the love of God save the world from rising sea levels due to the infinite tears they saffa crybabies have and just apologise to them.

bryce lawrence say sorry for the following,,,
- picking PDV as Boks headcoach
- benching bismarck and starting john smit
- injruing brussow in the 18th minute
- tackling schalk burger and forcing a knock on, which led to horwils try
- being the only person responsible for the Boks entering the RWC winning only 5 of their last 14 matches
- the greek euro crisis
- global warming

once u apologise bryce, im sure these good folk will do the world and my ears a favour and shut the hell up.
 

Hey sasue even that one eye of yours is not working. Nz are the laughing stock of the world re their refs.

Note sasue that  SA refs have been preferred  for Saturday - rated the best by Lyndon Bray and his panel.

Do yourself a favour and come clean Sasue. Bluster convinces no one. Bwahahahahahahahahaha

Sasu

Stop it - I could not stop laughing and messed up my key board with coffee once again.   However, you are right about the South Africans- they shoot themselves in the foot and then blame the world for it.  However - be it as it may - Bryce Lawrence is a lousy referee - he proved that in many games and he was kicked off the international referee panel for it.   Unless he improves his reffing abilities - he would not be re-admitted and apology woul be useles.

Let me tell you something else about referees.   Vritually all South Africans rate Dickeson badly - yet he was a good referee.   The problem was in his first game as referee.   There was a line-out in the Sprintgbok 25 with the All Blacks to throw in the ball.   The hooker was standing way inside the field of play and made a throw-in to the first player in the line-out.   The latter passed the ball back to the hooker and he scored a try.   The problem was not Dickeson's fault - but that of the line judge.    However, that incident doomed Dickeson for life in the eyes of the local rugby public and his reputation was made as bad.   I thought he was a good referee - but nobody else on this Board will ever agree with me on that one.

Let me tell you a further story about South Africans.   I am a descendent of one of the oldest Cape Dutch settler families in SA.   They arrived here in the period 1688 to 1709.   On the paternal side - the first settler married a daughter a Danish baron had with a local Afrian woman.   In any event that was not really an issue and the family spoke Afrikaans at all times.   My grandmother - a teacher who lost most of her cousins in the Anglo Boer War - one day called my brother and myself in and told us that she wants to teach us to speak English.   Rather surprised - since it was a virtually total Afrikaans area (where even a cousin of Queen Elizabeth who married a local spoke Afrikaans) - I asked her why.   The response was: "You must know what your enemies think and talk about."

The above episode clearly illustrate something about Afrikkans-speaking people in SA - they never forget or forgive anyone for what they regard as wrongful actions.   So any apology by Bryce Lawrence would not work - he is doomed for life insofar as they are concerned. 

Sasuke, funny you say that because I still have to hear about the mysterious Suzy and how she poisoned the kiwi's in the 95' world cup everytime someone hears I am South African..Talk about Saffa's whinging..Please man..NZL teams look for any excuse as to why they lost instead of just acknowledging their opponents were better on the day. Just like McCaw couldnt congratulate the Reds in last years s15 final...

@beeno1 & clevermike,

LMAO, i know that bryce was sh!t and NZs refs are amongst the worst in the world, but still a step up from the ausiies truth be told, i dont care about any match where kaplan, joubert, lawrence,,,,,,one more saffa ref but cant remember who ref, even NZ games cos IMO they are the best refs in the world.
i also dont ever blame the refs poor performance on conspiracies, IMO they really do try their best to ref the game, cos they have their own reputation to think of and human nature dictates that u want to show the world their best, but they are also human and like professional players will not always get it right, or in bryce lawrences case, have an absoloute shocker, maybe they should introduce a bench for the refs, so they can sub officials on??? lol

after 2007 when i moamed and whinged my ass of about barnes and the QF, many many a saffa and others showed me about as much sympathy as the navy seal team showed osama bin ladden. i took it on the chin then and now give the same level of sympathy when i hear similar cries.

(funny story off topic,,,,france vs All Blacks was at 7am melbourne morning and purposely started driniking late the night before, cos i ddint want to miss the game and i rocked home to watch it with my brother. with 3mins left on the clock NZ down on the scoreboard, my mum got up to get ready for church and she walked into the lounge, took one look at our faces and she cracked up in a hysterical mad laughter. when she retells the story to family, she always goes on about how she has never seen two more depressed looking people then she did that morning. at the time, mycbrother and i found nothing funny about it, but after a while it became quite a funny tale, guess time heals all wounds, :P)

dont worry boys, u guys will get over it, nothing like another to help u get over the other??? well it can be applied to woman, so no reason why it cant be applied to rugby games, LMAO, :P

@boklogic,

so all the kwis that has moaned to u about the 1995 RWC can only mean that EVERY kiwi feels the same way???
hmmmmmm, u sure ur username is not PDVlogic???

FYI, every RWC champion deserved their title and not one person in NZ or SA can say anything to tell me otherwise.

the AB RWC 2011 victory is the greatest con ever pulled. so you deserve it 100 %....with all that backroom strings being pulled and on the field antics by certain refs and getting apointed to do so. all i can say is well done. after all that effort you really deserve it.

@carpetmuncher,

lol and the evidence that u have to back those claims???

 Kaplan is a good ref, but should not be in charge of a playoff game with SA team involved even though I have no doubt he can remain impartial.

Oimatey normally I would agree with you. However oz and nz refs favour each other as their plan is to get the japies. Ideally get in an English ref but failing someone out of the trin nations a good SA ref i sabout the best they can do. Kaplan will be fine although if anything he favours visiting sides.

Ha Ha not at all Sasuke. All that does is back up my claim that kiwi's think they are the heat when it comes to rugby and no one comes close. Why cant the kiwi nation just say, "The Boks were incredible on that day in 95. They had more desire, passion and on the day they put it all together and came out firing. The better team definately won on the day!" I am an avid Bok supporter and I will be first to admit that in 95, that AB team, player for player, had it over the boks and they were much more fancied to win but not on that day. Too much pride and passion. Why cant kiwi's pay respect where its due instead of make up some bull story that they were poisoned. Poisoned rugby players dont compete for 120 mins of rugby thats for sure. Now listen to this theory..It took a kiwi (Bryce) to get rid of the boks and a South African (Joubert) to make sure the kiwi's won the cup..France were awarded almost no penalties in that final. With a guy like McCaw on the field and the amount of possession the French had, you can not tell me that there were not more than 2 or 3 infringements. Joubert new he would not leave NZL if kiwi's had lost but let me tell you something, on that day, just like that of the 95 world cup, the AB's were not the best team on the park. I dont care how much they smash the French in friendlies, on that day the French were way more inspired and would have won if not for Joubert's "favouring" tactics....AB's were always gona win that cup..Their first "real" test only came in the semi-final...Had the boks gotten thru like they should have, the AB's would have been trophyless again...

@boklogic,

each to their own, but i dont agree. the menatlity of NZ myself included was that Boks were a much easier opponent then the wallabies.
the Boks run of form entering the 2011 RWC was nothing short of complete sh!t since the 2009 EOYT with sych famous losses to sarcen, lecister, scotland and ireland.
the Boks then manged to beat the All Blacks once in four attempts against in PE and only after carter, nonu, McCaw, read, thorn, o franks and playing amny a player out of position.
Boks have also not won in eden park since 1936, before WW2, so finding anyone alive who might have seen the Boks win there with their own two eyes cante be the easiest of tasks.
so IMO, the argument that Boks were deliberately reffed out of the game was because the All Blacks didnt want to play u guys, are rubbish. i would definately have prefered playing the Boks in the semi finals, cos i really only saw the wallabies as the All Blacks biggest RWC threat, as i had stated many many times on allblack forums.
i reckon u guys are asking the wrong questions, like why was PDV coach in the first place??? was john smit really better then bismarck??? why did the Boks enter the RWC with zero momentum??? or just ignore the last question if a 35% win rate is Springboks momentum.
like i said, no doubt about it, lawerence was sh!t, but save the cospiracy theories for dan brown, who hasnt come up with a good one since the davinci code.

i have also defended the 1995 victory many times against my own countrymen, comspiracy theories aside, their was something magical to that Boks side and playing with the weight of the nation on their shoulders. im not going to go on and on about it, but like i said earlier, IMO, every RWC champion deserved their title..