Surging Sharks scrum to be tested at Ellis Park, says Bok prop

What is becoming one of the United Rugby Championship’s most dominant scrum packs will be tested when the Sharks travel to the Lions on Saturday for their penultimate South African local derby.

The fixture could determine the winner of the South African shield even before the final round of local derbies next week.

The Sharks meet the Lions at Ellis Park at 2pm, six points ahead of their Joburg rivals at the top of the shield table. A win would mean they defend their first-ever title won last year.

Sharks target scrum dominance

The Lions likewise have a golden opportunity for a better finish than their best-ever third-place result in 2023/24.

But they face an uphill climb against the Durban union, who, normally immensely strong in the aerial game, have increasingly dominated come scrum time.

After securing three back-to-back wins for the first time this season – against Clermont in the Champions Cup and the Stormers twice in the URC – the Sharks ranked third in the URC’s statistics for best scrum percentage (95%).

Their 32 scrum penalties is the second highest in the competition after the stormers, while the Bulls have a solid 28, and top the table for scrums won (97%).

Lions will be no walkover

Still, the teams were a match for each other in their first leg in Durban last month, which the Lions snatched 23-22.

“If you look at their personnel, they have unbelievable players there. You can clearly see they are scrumming as a pack together. It is not just about individuals,” said Sharks and Springbok prop Vincent Koch.

“They have a very good scrum coach as well. Someone like Julian [Redelinghuys] was an unbelievable scrummer. He was one of South Africa’s best tightheads when he was still playing.

“He knows how important the scrum is, what it means to the rest of the players. Especially at the backs – if you get reward in the scrums how easy it is for them to play on the advantage.”

Koch said the Sharks would face another massive battle up front, and had prepared accordingly.

“There is still a lot to build on our scrum. We have been working hard the last few days on that. This weekend will be a proper South African derby with scrums and set-pieces.”

He said the Sharks’ improvement in the set-piece would come from a mental shift as much as a technical one.

“The boys have been working off the field, on the field, a lot with technique and connections…

“I know we gave a few soft penalties away in the last two weeks. It’s something we can work on and be a dominant pack for 80 minutes.”