DURBAN - Well my article in Monday’s The Mercury ruffled a few feathers. In looking at the Sharks’ season in general the article, being a Monday report and not a Sunday match report, I highlighted that the Sharks’ two best matches of the year were against the Lions at Ellis Park.
And they were. The Sharks certainly deserved to win the first one, no question, when very dubious TMO calls robbed them of tries. Even the most Lion-hearted patron of Ellis Park would have agreed.
Which brought us to the weekend’s game, when once more the Sharks played way above the standard they have delivered over the season. In fact, since that last game they played at Ellis Park. And again, refereeing unfortunately was a major talking point.
I watched the game again on Monday and it is my frank assessment that the referee, Marius van der Westhuizen, was poor. Full stop.
Was he poorer for the Sharks than he was for the Lions? Well, that is up for debate and your verdict will probably depend on whether you wear red and white or black and white.
The truth is there was some appalling officiating and this is where Sanzaar should be taken to account.
In a game so important to the fortunes of the franchises, the players and the coaches, not to mention the most important folk of all, the supporters, why were the competition’s best officials not appointed for the knock-outs?
Van der Westhuizen came from nowhere to blow this match and was clearly “rusty”, to quote an official, who for obvious reasons must remain anonymous.
My report on Monday said the Sharks should have been good enough to rise above the refereeing, should not have “sulked” as the headline intimated and which was fairly drawn from my report, and should have taken into account that they were piss-poor in a number of other games throughout the season, while the Lions were good in every game they played.
The Sharks’ officialdom pointed out to me that I should not confuse the record of the Sharks’ performances across the season with how they played on the day at the weekend. I think that is valid criticism.
What I was trying to point out is that the Sharks were brilliant in two games this season. On both occasions refereeing came into question. So let’s separate the points.
Is it because the Sharks are in year one of their publicised three-year rebuilding plan that they have been inconsistent, and the players must learn that if they do not put in the required effort, they get the result they deserve?
Well, let’s hope that is the case for Sharks fans and lessons have been learned.
I also think it is fair to point out that the Lions are in year four under coach Johan Ackermann after he brought his nondescripts under his wing when they were axed from Super Rugby. As for the refereeing in the quarter-final? I thought Van der Westhuizen was out of his depth.
I have it on good authority that senior Lions coaching staff were “ready to throttle” him had their team lost.
Emotions ride high in these games, and the Sharks were certainly hard done by when they had a forward frivolously yellow-carded, and in this time the Lions cashed in on the scoreboard.
Let it also not go unmentioned that the Lions kickers left 15 points on the table. Elton Jantjies had a terrible day with the boot and Ruan Combrinck missed a sitter before landing his match-winner.
So let’s be fair. The Sharks played a heck of a game. The Lions kickers missed a number of “gimmes” by their standards ...
And did Sharks flank Dan du Preez touch the padding of the upright for his try or was he just short? The Lions certainly think so.
Let’s be fair to the Sharks, they can only get more consistent if they are indeed firmly committed to this three-year plan and can keep their squad together.