Esterhuizen: Shift in mindset and training driving Sharks resurgence

Sharks captain André Esterhuizen says changes in the team’s outlook and training intensity have driven their recent success, claiming four wins out of six games under interim coach JP Pietersen.

The Sharks bagged their biggest scalp last week when they beat the Stormers, who were previously unbeaten in eight United Rugby Championship matches, in front of a sold-out Cape Town Stadium.

It was a significant 30-19 win against the table-toppers away from home, lifting the Sharks from 14th on the table to 11th after just their third victory in nine matches.

While Pietersen credited new captain Esterhuizen’s leadership as decisive since John Plumtree’s departure, the skipper himself pointed to increased intensity at training and a renewed belief among the players.

Sharks buy into new approach

“It’s not me who turned it around, I can promise you that,” said the Springbok.

“It’s the buy-in from all the players, and everyone being on the same page. We’ve changed a bit of the mindset around the group, lifting the standards in training.

“If your training picks up and you train better, you play better. It’s definitely more a mindset change. It’s not like we don’t have the talent – it’s everyone performing to their best every weekend.”

He said the Stormers win vindicated the new leadership’s approach. However, they needed to follow up the win at their return fixture at Kings Park on Saturday (kick-off 5pm).

“There’s still a lot to improve on and we are working on it. For us to play to play a game like that and there is still so much room for improvement, it’s a good sign.

“It was a tough and brutal game. That is the thing about South African derbies. You need to be up for it every week.”

He said a large part of preparing for the return fixture was balancing recovery with training. The Sharks had a light training session on Monday and more intense session on Tuesday.

“Everyone is in the right mindset. We know we can’t give a once-off performance like that. We need to back it up the next week.

“This is our last game before the break so everyone wants to go into the break in a good way. There is massive motivation for this weekend.”