By Lucky Vince Pienaar
Eben Etzebeth may have been man of the match in the game the Sharks lost by two points against the Gauteng Lions, but he certainly didn’t look happy.
He is a man who wears his heart on his sleeve and by the way he walked around, sometimes waving at the crowd, it is clear that the Sharks team are in serious trouble.
Interestingly, commentator Joel Stransky mentioned during the match that Sharks coach John Plumtree had said that you can’t buy a winning team.
Well, John Plumtree, everybody knows that, but that’s a strange statement coming from you. Why did you come to the Sharks? Not for the money, one hopes.
After the match, you complained on TV that you have to “pick the boys up” after the defeat.
Which boys are you talking about? Are you talking about the 11 Springboks that featured in the starting line-up for the Sharks compared to the Gauteng Lions who had no Springboks in their line-up, or are you talking about the entire franchise that is sitting at the bottom of the United Rugby Championship log?
And it is doubtful if Etzebeth, a great rugby player by literally any standard in the world, is going to remain motivated by money for much longer — as his match over the weekend shows.
Etzebeth had a great first half and the Sharks were leading 18-3 at halftime.
But he faded badly during the second half. Watching him struggling to get up onto his feet after loose scrums was almost pathetic, but Plumtree didn’t substitute him.
Why did the coach not respond as the Lions chipped away at the Sharks’ lead, scoring 20 unanswered points in the half? Seeing as Etzebeth missed the previous match due to a stomach bug, did the coach not think the Springbok would suffer later in the match?
Neil Powell, as director of rugby, has been dismally unsuccessful at the Sharks. Bringing in Plumtree, seemed to be a desperate move to begin with and is becoming more suspect as the URC slips away from them.
Surely Roc Nation, which indirectly has the majority shareholding in the Sharks franchise, won’t be happy to prop up a losing outfit forever. One wonders when — and how — they will react.
And is it too soon to start wondering when Eben Etzebeth will be walking away from the Sharks? And will he have that famous smile on his face?
Pictured above: Eben Etzebeth.
Image source: X
