Pietersen Encouraged By Sharks Performance Despite Sale Loss
Sharks head coach JP Pietersen says he was encouraged by his team’s performance after fielding a mix of youth and experience in their 26–10 loss to Sale Sharks in the Investec Champions Cup in Manchester on Saturday.
Like many South African clubs competing in Europe, Pietersen rested several Springbok stars, including captain Siya Kolisi, Ox Nche and Grant Williams, as the Sharks fell short against their English hosts.
The Sharks’ points came through a try by Emmanuel Tshituka, with Siya Masuku adding a conversion and a penalty.
“Obviously, we’re disappointed that we didn’t get the result,” Pietersen said.
“But I’m also proud of the way the boys fought for the full 80 minutes. It was a young group, but a good mix of youth and experienced players.
“We gave ourselves a chance to win the game. To be 7–3 up at halftime showed the fight in the group. Unfortunately, in the first 15 minutes of the second half, we lost a bit of concentration and they scored two quick tries, which left us with a mountain to climb.
“We fought back and you could see the belief and hope in the group, but they scored again and put the game out of our reach.
“If you look at the overall performance, we want to fight from minute one to minute 80, and the players showed that while playing some good rugby.”
The defeat was the Sharks’ second consecutive loss, following their home defeat to the Emirates Lions in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship last weekend.
The Durban-based side, who are in Pool 1 and currently fifth on the Investec Champions Cup standings, will return to European action next weekend when they host French outfit ASM Clermont at Kings Park Stadium.
The Sharks will be aiming to secure their second win of the competition.
“I’m excited about what this group can still achieve,” Pietersen added.
“There are a lot of positives we can take into next week’s match against Clermont at home. It’s been a good week overall, but we’re really disappointed not to have come away with the result.”
