Coach JP Pietersen expressed his frustration over the Sharks' lack of focus and rising penalties after their disappointing 29-12 loss to Connacht in the EPCR Challenge Cup last-16. The defeat saw the Sharks bow out of the tournament in Galway, despite entering the break with a 12-7 lead. Connacht turned the tables in the second half with three tries, sending them sailing into the quarter-finals.
The Sharks, who were handicapped by a less experienced squad, initially controlled the game, clinching the territorial and possession advantage. However, their inability to capitalize on these opportunities cost them dearly after the interval.
"Obviously disappointed with how we finished the second half,"
Pietersen lamented.
"We set ourselves up well in the first half... But in the second half, a lack of concentration and a bit of ill-discipline let us down."
Connacht seized the momentum post-halftime, with Cathal Forde crossing the line twice and Shamus Hurley-Langton contributing another try. Pietersen noted, "At half-time you always feel like you’re one score away from putting yourself in a strong position, but they defended well. So ja, it’s a disappointing feeling.” Despite the loss, he highlighted the positives, particularly the team's robust first-half performance under challenging weather conditions and their resilience towards the match's close.
"There are a lot of positives we can take into the last four [Vodacom URC] games," Pietersen pointed out. "And even at the end of the game, it showed we didn’t give up. We could have easily lost by 50 points with the possession Connacht had, but we stayed in the fight until the last minute. That shows there’s grit in the group and there’s fight, which is something we can build on.”
Looking ahead, the Sharks are set to refocus on the URC where they stand tenth with upcoming matches against Ospreys and Edinburgh on the road, followed by home clashes with Benetton and Zebre. "Going forward, we just want to put a collective 80-minute performance together," Pietersen stated. "That’s what we’ve been asking for – consistency and an 80-minute performance. We haven’t had that this season, it’s been very up and down. We’ve got a couple of injuries, so we’ll reassess, make a plan, hopefully get some players back and then go again for the last four games."
The Sharks aim to harness a potential 20 log points from these games, possibly propelling them into a top-eight finish, setting a hopeful tone for the remainder of their season.
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Coach JP Pietersen expressed his frustration over the Sharks' lack of focus and rising penalties after their disappointing 29-12 loss to Connacht in the EPCR Challenge Cup last-16. The defeat saw the Sharks bow out of the tournament in Galway, despite entering the break with a 12-7 lead. Connacht turned the tables in the second half with three tries, sending them sailing into the quarter-finals.
The Sharks, who were handicapped by a less experienced squad, initially controlled the game, clinching the territorial and possession advantage. However, their inability to capitalize on these opportunities cost them dearly after the interval.
"Obviously disappointed with how we finished the second half,"
Pietersen lamented."We set ourselves up well in the first half... But in the second half, a lack of concentration and a bit of ill-discipline let us down."
Connacht seized the momentum post-halftime, with Cathal Forde crossing the line twice and Shamus Hurley-Langton contributing another try. Pietersen noted, "At half-time you always feel like you’re one score away from putting yourself in a strong position, but they defended well. So ja, it’s a disappointing feeling.” Despite the loss, he highlighted the positives, particularly the team's robust first-half performance under challenging weather conditions and their resilience towards the match's close.
"There are a lot of positives we can take into the last four [Vodacom URC] games," Pietersen pointed out. "And even at the end of the game, it showed we didn’t give up. We could have easily lost by 50 points with the possession Connacht had, but we stayed in the fight until the last minute. That shows there’s grit in the group and there’s fight, which is something we can build on.”
Looking ahead, the Sharks are set to refocus on the URC where they stand tenth with upcoming matches against Ospreys and Edinburgh on the road, followed by home clashes with Benetton and Zebre. "Going forward, we just want to put a collective 80-minute performance together," Pietersen stated. "That’s what we’ve been asking for – consistency and an 80-minute performance. We haven’t had that this season, it’s been very up and down. We’ve got a couple of injuries, so we’ll reassess, make a plan, hopefully get some players back and then go again for the last four games."
The Sharks aim to harness a potential 20 log points from these games, possibly propelling them into a top-eight finish, setting a hopeful tone for the remainder of their season.