It is a week of new starts for Siya Kolisi but the only one that warrants public discussion is his reinvention at No 8 for the Sharks in today’s massive clash with Munster, the 2023 United Rugby Championship champions.
Kolisi has won two World Cups as the Springboks’ openside flanker but John Plumtree wants to explore Kolisi’s effectiveness at No 8, the position Stormers coach John Dobson identified for him just before he left Cape Town to join the Sharks.
The Sharks had been bought by American consortium MVM Holdings and they were anxious that the Springbok captain play in the No 6 jersey for his new team.
It is funny how things can go full circle in sports because at that time, one of the star performers for the Sharks was James Venter, who had a stunning season in the No 6 jersey for coach Sean Everitt. The Sharks topped the Super Rugby table with Venter as a very effective openside flank.
But the arrival of Kolisi saw Venter sidelined and Everitt had to adjust his game plan because Kolisi is not a typical openside fetcher.
Almost five years later, Plumtree has seen the worth of Venter and wants to keep him at openside flank while he is confident that Kolisi can be ever better at No 8, which is what Dobson thought back in 2020.
So for today’s game we at last have the situation of Venter and Kolisi being accommodated in the same loose trio, with Vincent Tshituka the third member.
Plumtree says he is excited to have three highly physical loose forwards starting against Munster while backing them up are two in-form up-and-comers in Manu Tshituka and Phepsi Buthelezi.
Interestingly, Plumtree was involved with the Hurricanes team that was well-beaten by the Stormers at the start of that 2020 season at Newlands and Kolisi was the No 8 that day for the Super Rugby fixture.
“I think there is a lot of potential with this mix of loosies,” Plumtree said on Thursday. “I’m looking forward to seeing how they go against a tough Munster pack.
“I think playing at No 8 we will see Siya carrying the ball a lot more. He is also a good off-loader and No 8 will give him more opportunities to show that skill.”
This weekend’s round of URC games mark the end of the “beginning” block of five games. The competition takes a break in November because of the end-of-year tours to the north undertaken by the southern hemisphere teams.
In general, the SA teams have fared better this season than in the previous three URCs. Traditionally, the local teams have started slowly and finished with a bang, with the Stormers and Bulls between them featuring in the three finals.
For the Sharks, today is about how much ground they can make up on the log after a difficult tour undertaken without their Springboks.
If the Sharks can beat Munster, they will be in a comfortable position when their tournament resumes in Durban on November 30 with the Stormers’ visit.
Sharks: 15 Aphelele Fassi, 14 Eduan Keyter, 13 Lukhanyo Am, 12 Andre Esterhuizen, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Jordan Hendrikse, 9 Grant Williams, 8 Siya Kolisi 7 Emmanuel Tshituka, 6 James Venter, 5 Emile van Heerden, 4 Eben Etzebeth (captain), 3 Vincent Koch, 2 Bongi Mbonambi, 1 Ox Nche.
Replacements: 16 Fez Mbatha, 17 Nuthuko Mchunu, 18 Ruan Dreyer, 19 Jason Jenkins, 20 Phepsi Buthlezi, 21 Jaden Hendrikse, 22 Siya Masuku, 23 Francois Venter.