Durban – The Sharks will field an imposing team against the Lions in the Super Rugby Unlocked opener on Friday night in Durban despite being without a host of injured key players.
Unavailable due to injury sustained during lockdown are Spirngbok wing Sbu Nkosi, fellow wing Madosh Tambwe, hooker Kerron van Vuuren and fullback Aphelele Fassi.
Nevertheless, coach Sean Everitt has been able to call on 13 players who featured in last week’s Springbok Showdow, including the whole front row of OX Nche, Dylan Richardson and Thomas du Toit.
Five of the seven backline players named to play the Lions also played in the Green vs Gold match.
Flank James Venter, who missed the friendly against the Bulls two weeks ago due to a concussion, says the squad is primed to deliver a big performance.
“The camp is really excited. We knew going into the Bulls game that it was a warm-up match and we took that in our stride, although we learned a lot and will bounce back,” Venter said.
“This week has been about prepping for the Lions and we have trained hard, the vibe in the camp is great and we’re really keen to get stuck into Super Rugby Unlocked.”
