Sharks chasing bonus points - Marais

The Rebels begin their South African tour with a stop in Durban to take on the Sharks. They’re coming into the match off the back of a solid win over the Brumbies.

Meanwhile the Sharks are fresh off a break – which came right after a bruising encounter with the Jaguares. They beat the Argentinians in one of their most physical clashes of the season and the win put them back in the qualifying spaces in the South African conference.

Coach Rob du Preez admitted that the Sharks had been eyeing a bonus point win going into that clash but it ended up being a tight contest and the home side were happy to walk away with an 18-13 win.

Sharks hooker Franco Marais echoed those sentiments after training on Tuesday afternoon.

“It’s always tough against those okes. I saw Rob said in the post-match press conference that maybe it was a bit ambitious to go for the bonus point but we did think we would be able to get the bonus point against them,” the hooker said.

“The fact that we didn’t get the bonus point was a little bit disappointing but you can never be unhappy with a win. We’re very satisfied with the win but somewhere along the line we need to start getting bonus point wins. It’s going to count at the end of the season.”

The Sharks pack has been really competitive this season and has looked good at the set pieces and in open play. They faced arguably their toughest test against the Jaguares, which was laden with Argentine internationals. Considering that fact, Marais says his forward mates are enjoying the competition among themselves but believe that they should be recognised as one of the best packs in the competition.

“We’re very tight. Right through the whole pack the competition has been very healthy. We spoke this morning and we feel like we need to make a step up now. We have to take it to the next level, we want to be the best pack in the Super Rugby. If we want to achieve that we have to step up – hopefully this weekend we will see even more unity and aggression among the eight forwards.”

The Sharks may also have Keegan Daniel available for the clash and Marais says the veteran loose forward’s impact in the team is invaluable. The 32-year-old has finally recovered from a fractured arm and is back in full training with the team.

“Keegan is an excellent leader and an excellent player on the field. His composure and leadership brings so much to the team, he actually doesn’t have to train, he just needs to be there and he brings it so it’s great to have him back,” Marais said.