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In running his eye over the team, he admitted that while he says every year at this stage of the pre-season that he’s happy, “I guess the nice thing now is that we have almost everyone out on the field, not too many people in the medical room – that’s a real positive.”
In the past, the team hasn’t always been in such good shape so the class of 2012 is sure to bring much cheer to coaches, team-mates and fans alike. The only concerns right now are Willem Alberts, Jean Deysel and Conrad Hoffmann.
“With Willem and Jean , it’s a week to week thing. If they don’t make it for round one then we’ll have other players. It’s a long season and it’s important that their rehab goes well and when they come back, there aren’t any reoccurrences. That’s the main thing for me. It’s unfortunate for Conrad, he ended up needing an operation, so he’s out for 10 weeks. We have Charl McLeod as well as Fred and also Cobus Reinach as back-up.”
The Sharks are well-covered in the front row, a potentially Springbok one mixed with some up-and-coming youth that has already had a taste of Sharks rugby.
At lock, The Sharks coach explained that, “A lot depends on fitness, and if Ross Skeate and Alistair Hargreaves can find some real form and dominate the middle of the lineout, while we have bigger ball-carrying locks such as Jandre Marais and Anton Bresler. Piet-Steph du Toit is in the squad as well and is an outstanding youngster who has been involved with the SA under-20s. He could feature a bit.
“Super Rugby is so intense that you have some players that can cope with playing in every game and some who can only cope with playing a handful. So there might be a couple of surprises, but that’s the nice thing after having blooded a couple of youngsters in the Currie Cup.”
He confirmed that Jean Deysel or Willem Alberts could be utilised at lock if necessary: “They wouldn’t be my first-choice but in a game it could happen.”
Loose-forward is an area with no definable frailties – certainly The Sharks have plenty of ammo in that department, while the backline, incorporating new recruits in Riaan Viljoen and Tim Whitehead should offer The Sharks coach more than enough attacking firepower.
“Riaan Viljoen is very experienced and an outstanding attacking player and Tim Whitehead has impressed me for two years and never really got an opportunity at Province. He’ll get the opportunity here to step up. He’s clearly a quality footballer so I guess with the players we have, there is possibility a bit more depth in the backline.
“Then there are youngsters like Gouws Prinsloo and Paul Jordaan who impressed me in The Sharks Under 21 campaign last year, they add to that flair. So there is a mixture of excitement and a bit of the unknown about what’s coming which makes it exciting.”
Plumtree confirmed that Patrick Lambie will probably focus on one position: “We’re excited about Pat playing flyhalf. We’re in a good position now that we know we have Fred for the Super Rugby campaign, that gives us good depth in that position. We’d also consider giving Fred a role at 9. He prefers to play flyhalf, that’s his favourite position, but he could play off the bench at 9 if needed.”
In the midfield, 2011 campaigners Marius Joubert and Meyer Bosman are available along with youngsters like Tim Whitehead and Paul Jordaan, “who bring a lot of X-factor. So there is some nice competition in that position which is possibly a change for us.”
The Sharks are again in a good place out wide and at fullback have Riaan Viljoen, Louis Ludik, “and Odwa Ndungane can also play there, so we have ample depth in that position.”
Finally, aside from actual playing talent, Plumtree believes that player empowerment is vital. “The team is ready to grow in all aspects of leadership – there are a lot of players who have been around long enough now with five or six Super Rugby campaigns behind them, and I want to see a huge step up in terms of responsibility.
“We’ve spoken about it, we’ve seen it and it’s a priority for me.”
