Beast to captain Sharks

Tendai ‘Beast’ Mtawarira will lead from the front when he captains the Sharks against the Kings in their Super Rugby opener in Port Elizabeth.

|||

Looking down the Sharks’ first team sheet of the year to play the Kings, there were one or two surprises as coach Gary Gold named his strongest available team.

The bigger surprise came when looking for the bracketed letter “C” to denote the captain, only to find it next to veteran prop Tendai Mtawarira’s name, rather than Marcell Coetzee, who was named as vice-captain this season.

Pat Lambie’s injury in the first warm-up game against Toulon was a hammer blow for the Sharks in terms of playmaking, and it also left a gaping leadership hole.

Coetzee was unveiled as the vice-captain alongside Lambie, and was always expected to be his natural successor.

This was apparent when Coetzee was handed the armband for their second tour match against Toulouse a few days later.

However, such is the nature of professional rugby nowadays that the captaincy is diluted into a group of veteran players, one of whom is Mtawarira.

Gold offered a logical explanation for naming his loosehead as captain over Coetzee, saying that it had always been part of his plans.

“There is no sinister reason for ‘Beast’ taking the captaincy,” Gold explained.

For the first time in @CellC Sharks @SuperRugby history,twin brothers have been included in starting-line #KINvSHA pic.twitter.com/BFB3E85OAx

— The Sharks (@TheSharksZA) February 25, 2016

“When Pat went down it was Tendai who took over the captaincy on the field. In the second game, Beast was not allowed to play due to Saru regulations, and so Marcell took over the armband.

“Both guys are part of the leadership group, and Marcell is definitely still in the mix for the captaincy.”

The only other place on the team sheet that caused pause for thought is at No 5, where a young Hyron Andrews finds himself.

Not many will be familiar with the lanky lock, but he has been a shining star for the Sharks at age group and Vodacom Cup level.

Andrews gets his shot in place of Stephan Lewies, who is still recovering from a horrific injury that has kept him out of rugby for nearly a year.

We are looking forward to an exciting first game of the Super Rugby campaign this weekend! #KINvSHA #BelieveIt pic.twitter.com/eW2Fn5ydIx

— The Sharks (@TheSharksZA) February 26, 2016

“The idea was always to see if Stephan was ready to go, but we would rather give him the confidence to play next week,” Gold said of his selection choice.

“Through the medical advice that we got, they felt that he just needed to spend another week with the team, running and training.”

Luckily for Gold, despite injuries to locks Ruan Botha, Giant Mtyanda, Lewies and even Jacques Potgieter, he is excited to see what Andrews can offer after impressing in the 16 weeks of pre-season.

“My decision was made easier because I am really, really impressed by Hyron. I think he has been outstanding,” the coach said.

“He absolutely put up his hand in France, and I want the guys to feel that if they put in a performance like that, they will be rewarded.”

Speaking of rewarding those who performed in France, many would have been keen to see young flyhalf Garth April given a run, but, the coach has opted for the more experienced Joe Pietersen, with April coming off the bench.

“There was a debate, rather than a temptation, with Garth,” said Gold.

“Our progress with him has been fantastic, and I have been really excited by him, but we will slowly but surely bring him into the mix, and not put him under any pressure.”

The first game of the season is a critical one.

The Kings, a bit of a thrown-together team, are most dangerous at the start of their season, so Gold is giving them the utmost respect.

Should the Sharks merely win the game in Port Elizabeth, it won’t go a long way in quelling the fires of those predicting the doom of the franchise. The Sharks know they need an impressive win. - The Mercury