‘Still a lot to play for’ after Sharks book Round of 16 spot
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Sharks director of rugby Neil Powell has urged his side to push for another victory in Round 4 of the Heineken Champions Cup after they became the first South African side to secure a knockout stage place.
The Durban-based side, one of three South African teams debuting in this season’s Heineken Champions Cup, eased to a 32-3 win over Union Bordeaux-Bègles at Hollywoodbets Kings Park on Saturday, ensuring they will progress from Pool A.
But ahead of their trip to Harlequins next Saturday, Powell has reminded his team how crucial securing top seeding and home advantage in the knockout stage will be.
“Getting five points is important for our journey going forward,” Powell said after the Bordeaux win. “We go with momentum and a bit of flow into our next game against Harlequins.”
🗣 "We're thankful for the people for always coming out"@SharksRugby captain @SiyaKolisi thanked the fans after their win over Bordeaux ❤️
Catch the full highlights from all of yesterday's #HeinekenChampionsCup matches on YouTube 📺
— Heineken Champions Cup (@ChampionsCup) January 15, 2023
“Whether we are already in the top 16 or not. There is still a lot to play for. We have to get home advantage in the knockout games.
“If you look at the history of this competition the team with home ground advantage obviously has a massive advantage. Even in the pool games.”
Cell C Sharks will hope to have Curwin Bosch back for this weekend, with the fly-half, who tallied 28 points over the opening two rounds, missing the Bordeaux game with a hamstring issue.
“He picked up a bit of a ‘hammie’ in the performance session on Thursday and we were hoping he would pull through in the captain’s run on Friday but unfortunately he didn’t,” Powell explained.
“We didn’t want to risk him. The physios are confident he will be back next weekend.
“Again, it will be a case of whether we want to risk him? We will have a bit of time before we depart for London to play Harlequins.”
