Sharks aim to give Du Toit and Kolisi a King’s Park send-off to remember
PARTING GIFT: Thomas du Toit of Cell C Sharks before the game. Pic: ©INPHO/Andy Watts
Munster’s United Rugby Championship (URC) clash against the Sharks at King’s Park appears to have little riding on it as neither side can slip out of the play-off positions.
Well, the Sharks could miss out on a top-eight place in theory if Benetton somehow thrash the Stormers in Stellenbosch and the Sharks are in turn heavily beaten by Munster in Durban. Neither scenario is likely.
Munster also have a super model-thin chance of reaching the top four if they secure a bonus point victory in the final round and current fourth-place sitters Glasgow lose at home to Connacht without earning a bonus point. There is hope, but it’s miniscule.
A more realistic approach for Munster is to focus on winning against the Sharks, even if it’s 3-0, to lock-in fifth place and avoid a return trip to South Africa for the quarterfinals. That is the ‘prize’ for ending sixth because the Stormers have third place sewn up.
After last week’s heroic effort against the Stormers in Cape Town to win 26-24, Munster are carrying form and confidence into Durban’s muggy air. But they are also set to meet a Sharks side with a little more than a play-off place to play for.
Long-serving prop Thomas du Toit, who has spent 10 years at the Sharks, is playing his last home game for the club. He will join Bath in the off-season and given the Sharks’ situation where they are eighth on the standings, there is no chance of anther home URC match during this campaign.
Springbok captain Siya Kolisi, who has been at the Sharks for a little more than two years is also playing his final home game for the team before he joins French club Racing 92.
Normally players try to tone down these milestones, but Du Toit didn’t attempt to hide that fact that it might add to his motivation for the match.
“Last week, it (leaving) definitely hit me a little bit. I just realised that, you know, 10 seasons or a decade is coming to an end at a union that I've really tried to be loyal to during the time that I've been here,” Du Toit said.
“It’s definitely emotional, but you know, it’s an exciting time in my life too. So, on the one hand, I’m hurting a little bit to be leaving, but on the other side, it's exciting.
“You’d be a bit naive if you didn’t think about it and you didn’t work through those emotions. It's something I've been processing for the last two weeks or so.
“Listen, my job is a rugby player. I need to play good rugby and I want to leave this union on a very big high, as high as possible. It's a scenario now of leaving the jersey in a better state that you got it.
“We often speak about it, but now it's reality and now it needs to happen from my side.
“I am not one of those people who will just throw away a ten-year career at one club and pretend it didn't mean anything. It means a lot to me and “It is important to me, it is emotional. But I handle it the best way I can. And my way of handling it is to play good rugby. We will definitely need full dominance up front against Munster.”
Du Toit, a seasoned Bok prop, has only been a Sharks player in his professional career, barring a short between seasons stint at Munster where he earned six caps.
'Bok skipper Kolisi is likely to garner most headlines at the weekend despite having spent the bulk of his career with the Stormers.
That doesn’t concern Du Toit in the least. He prefers to quietly go about his business, which is entirely in keeping with life as a prop. It’s generally a thankless and unglamorous job.
“Siya is a natural leader and one of his traits is that he gets along with most people, and he has brought that personality and inclusiveness to the Sharks,” Du Toit said about his Bok colleague.
“The big thing about Siya is that in his personal relationships, he is not superficial. Obviously, he can’t get to know everyone and get close to everyone on that level, but he’s been a great personality to have around and has been good for connecting the team to the community.
“I am hoping that this isn’t the end of it and that I get a chance to continue to work with Siya in the future.”
Nearly three weeks ago the Sharks thumped Munster 50-35 in a Champions Cup game. It was tight until halftime, but in the 13 minutes after the break the Sharks scored three tries and ended the contest.
The Munster that arrived in Durban this week are a better team. They mentally and physically didn’t endure those soft moments against the Stormers last week and they will almost certainly pose tougher questions of the Sharks on Saturday.
“They are going to be much better prepared,” Du Toit said. “I think they had some tough conversations within their own camp. They won’t be the same.
“They played some unbelievable rugby against the Stormers. We are going to see more of that. Their coach made it clear what they needed to work on after our game. They clearly got it right in Cape Town.”
As for other results and outcomes that could see the Sharks end seventh, or as unlikely as it is, out of the top eight, Du Toit is not wasting energy on looking over his shoulder.
“Obviously we’d prefer to end seventh, or as high as we possibly can get, but we’re not looking further than what we can create with our own team to make it happen.
“We're not looking at the other games; who's winning and who's losing. We're just focusing on ourselves, and on a win against Munster first and foremost. And then after that, hopefully we can get a bonus point.”
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