The following from Sharksworld:-
"The Sharks have experienced a lot of player movement since the new regime took over. Some player movements have been great for the union and others not so great. The squad needs to some stability and continuity going forward, especially considering the post World Cup exodus that is approaching. Backing the talent already on the books and limiting wasteful expenditure is critical to the Sharks becoming the team and brand we know it can be.
I want to focus on the players under 26 years old that I believe The Sharks must invest in to ensure the consistent growth of Sharks rugby.
In the front row we have Dale Chadwick (SA Schools 2008), Thomas Du Toit (SA u20 2014/15) , Ruan Kramer (SA u20 squad 2015) , Mzamo Majola (SA u20 sqaud 2015) , Marne Coetzee (SA u20 2013) , Chris De Beer , Kyle Cooper (SA u20 2009) , Franco Marais (SA u20 2012) and Monde Hadebe . Most of these front rowers have and will still represent South Africa at Junior level. There is no need to look for “established” players outside of the Sharks system , which would just lead to wasteful expenditure.
In the second row we have Etienne Oosthuizen , Pieter-Steph du Toit, Stephan Lewies and Hyron Andrews (SA u20 2015). 2 Springboks and 1 Junior Springbok representative.
In the back row there is Khaya Majola (SA u20 2012) , Marcell Coetzee , Renaldo Bothma (hopefully a permanent transfer in the near future and Namibian international) , Jean-Luc du Preez (SA U20) , Daniel du Preez (SA U20) , Tera Mtembu (SA Sevens) and Ayron Schraam (SA u20 training squad 2015). 2 international players, a Blitzbok and the rest are Junior Springbok players of past and present. Do we really need players from outside of the province?
At halfbacks we have Cobus Reinach, Stefan Ungerer (SA u20 2013) , Hanco Venter (SA U20 2013) , Cameron Wright , Pat Lambie , Fred Zeilinga and Innocent Radebe (SA Schools 2014 and SA u20 squad 2015). We have 2 Springboks, 3 Junior Springboks/SA Schools and 2 guys in Zeilinga and Wright who were desperately unlucky not to be Junior Springboks; but have proven their worth to the Union.
At Center we see Andre Esterhuizen (SA u20 2014) , Marra Louw , Paul Jordaan (SA U20 2011/12 and SA Sevens) and S’bura Sithole (SA Sevens). Great power brought by the inside centers and pace to burn at 13 with 2 Blitzbokke.
Outside back we not as stocked up as we would like; but one needs to consider that Sithole and Jordaan can cover wings as well. There is Sizo Maseko , Jaco Van Tonder and Tyler Fisher (SA u20 2013). Fisher can also play outside centre. So I would say The Sharks possibly need to develop a young Fullback to add some depth in that department.
The Sharks clearly don’t need to be spending loads of cash on players that are past their prime and average squad players. Got all you need on the books already
.
I am certainly confident that these group of young men can take Sharks rugby to the very top and keep it there and I do hope the powers in charge can see it as well."
COMMENTS
I was part of a rather angry attack on the Sharks management since the fiasco on Saturday and asked outright for a full indication of players who are younger players and in the Junior category at present.
This is also important - since there are indications that some senior players will be leaving the squad after the world cup and some are in fact really not up to standard in any event.
I am delighted to see the info provided and my comments are as follows:-
Front Row
The general public is well aware of Thomas du Toit and Dale Chadwick (props) and Kyle Cooper (hooker) - the rest are basically just about 2014 school leavers and players just over a year out of school.
Tight Heads
I have always been rather hesitant about Dale Chadwick as a prop and there are still question marks about him.
Marne Coetzee
The really promising Tighthead is Marne Coetzee. He was the Tighthead for the Sharks in the Under 21 CC semi-final last year but was injured playing in the pre-season matches of the Varsity Shield competition and would be out until circa June 2015 . There is not much about him on the net - his stats are apparently totally out of date.
I will go on later on thi s item
