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| Deon Carstens. Image © sharksrugby.co.za |
Having had a loose piece of cartilage in his knee removed in December, he has only recently started running again as he builds up his fitness, but confirms that he should be available for selection for the opening Vodacom Super 14 match against the Chiefs.
“I would have liked to have played in the preseason games,” he admits, “but it’s not right yet; luckily I still have time. I’m hoping it all goes well for them.”
While he points out that it’s a preparation exercise, “it’s always important when you put The Sharks jersey on to win. But we want to see how the things we worked on in the off-season work on the field, new patterns or plans, those are the things we need to sort out.”
With some interesting preseason results - the Reds beating the Waratahs, the Highlanders beating the Chiefs and the Stormers scoring a 54-12 victory over the Western Force - the big Sharks prop agrees that not too much should be read into the results of these early games.
“It’s good to win to get some confidence, but winning against weak opposition gives a false sense of confidence – it doesn’t really count – and while it’s nice if you score tries off planned moves, I don’t think you can read much into anything. Once the competitions starts, then it’s a different issue.”
To expect a 50-pointer [like what happened between the Force and Stormers on Saturday] is unrealistic he says, especially with a Western Force side expected to resemble their first choice much more than Saturday’s game. “We speak of the process a lot, but it’s about getting all our players through the game without injury, getting the fitness up and hopefully we’ll have a bit of running rugby.
“Friday night against the Stormers will be a tough game, I think both teams will probably pick their strongest teams, so tonight is just about getting the cobwebs out. The Force will be hungry tonight though, if they go home without a win they’ll probably feel this series wasn’t a success for them.”
Now into his 10th campaign with The Sharks, he admits that there’s always a bit of nervousness around this time, “because you never know what everyone else has been up to. You can only train as hard as you can and have faith in the plans your coaching staff and management have in place.
“For me, the most positive thing is, and I know some people think the draw is tough, but we start with two home games. We really have to put an emphasis on those two, to get big crowds in to watch us here at The Absa Stadium Durban. If you can go on tour having two wins under the belt, you’re 50% there to have a good tour. Then you just need one or two good games and you’re set up for the season. So that’s why the Chiefs and Cheetahs are going to be real humdingers, games we have to grind out.
“I know in recent years the bonus points have cost us, but I reckon from those first two games, you just need the wins, then you’re set up and can go for gold on tour. We still have a good run at home when we come back, so I see a good Super 14 for us this year.”
Despite a five week tour, Carstens admits that it’s not really the disadvantage some might think it is. The Bulls won the tournament in 2007 and 2009 having had the five match tour and he admits that, “I certainly don’t see it as a negative and as far as I know, most of my team mates don’t. We enjoy touring. You can’t moan about it, it’s not going to go away so you might as well enjoy it and that’s where the management plan the tour well.
“Looking at our squad, we have a really strong one. Hopefully everything falls into place because we have an established team with a core that has been around for a few years so if we don’t make it, we’re underachieving. You can’t sit with a team like this, the coaching pedigree we have and all the support behind us and not play good rugby. The onus is on the players to stand up and be counted for this year.”
