Springbok legends dissect Sharks' attacking woes after 'unacceptable' season

A change in head coach occurred mid-season, with JP Pietersen replacing John Plumtree on an interim basis before taking over permanently. Results did improve initially under the legendary Springboks winger, but it was ultimately not enough as they were knocked out of the Investec Champions Cup and Challenge Cup and were unable to qualify for the URC quarter-finals.

One of the Sharks‘ biggest issues all season has been their attack, according to Burger, De Villiers, and fellow former Springbok Hanyani Shimange, with the Durbanites too reliant on their set-piece prowess.

Reports over the weekend stated that the Sharks are looking to invest in a new fly-half ahead of next season, with Pietersen wanting an experienced international to help develop young number 10s and run the attack when many of the Springboks are away.

Wallabies veteran James O'Connor and Italian Tommy Allan were namechecked by the report, but former Bok centre De Villiers believes that there is a structural problem, not a personnel one.

"They have Jean Smith, Siya Masuku, and Jordan Hendrikse; they've kind of flirted with all three of those at times, but I think all three of them are very different players," the former Springboks captain said on the Boks Unpacked podcast.

"So, if you have totally different players, and you change at fly-half, then it's very difficult to get into a proper structure and get used to the flow of your attack.

"In a way, Leinster is the same, where it seems almost as if Harry Byrne has kind of the shoo-in at the moment and Sam Prendergast has moved to the bench, while Ciaran Frawley is at 12 and 15 rather than at 10.

"So I always say when that position changes so much, it's difficult to get a flow going if you are going through difficult times. People will say the Springboks can move between Handre, Manie, and Sacha, and they don't lose a beat. But I think it's a totally different environment there. It's a far more settled team, and it's a team that understands the way they want to play. It'll be interesting to see where the Sharks go in the future."

While De Villiers pointed to Leinster, Burger referenced the Lions' success under the guidance of number 10 Chris Smith, who is the URC's leading points scorer.

"If we take the Lions, for example, they have got Chris Smith, and he's not the most dynamic attacking rugby player," he began.

"But the Lions' attacking shape is so nice, so direct because they know what they're about. He does the game management, but with him at number 10, they've scored the most tries in the URC (70), they've got the most points in the URC (508), so it just shows the value of good attacking coaching and a clear identity of how they play. You stay in motion. Everyone has got options. And Chris Smith is running the most successful attack in the URC at present."

The Sharks may be in the market for a new fly-half, but they will also have a new attack coach in Durban with Scott Mathie arriving from Edinburgh and taking over from Dave Williams, who will assume the newly created general manager role - a fact the trio did not take into account.

But the change is needed, according to Burger, who said that several players have struggled to perform in the fly-half position over the past few seasons.

"If you put Chris Smith in that Sharks' side, are the Sharks going to be the team that scores the most tries in this competition? No, they're not," he continued.

"You want to say it's the fly-half (who is the problem), but every single fly-half that's played there, whether it's Curwin Bosch or whoever else it's been in the last three or four years, they all play the same. They are all deep, lateral, and they're not in motion all the time. They battle to get any continuity going.

"They've obviously got a massive number 12 that gets them gain line, but off the back of that, there's not much to offer. Often, for me, if you get a free play, they get a lot of free plays. If they get 10 free plays a game from penalty or scrum advantage, how many will they finish off the back of that? And the answer is yeah, not many."

De Villiers agreed that a fly-half wouldn't solve the struggles with ball in hand, but says that it would be a good place to start.

"I don't think fly-half is the only issue that the Sharks have," he said. "But what I will say is that I think the reason why the Lions are where they are on the log and where they haven't missed out on games previously, they would also lose games because they become too loose. And Chris Smith is a big reason why they have not dropped those games this year.

"So for the Sharks, if you do have someone like that, it can definitely add value to the environment and to the consistency and game management. But that is not the only issue that they have, and the bigger issues need to be sorted out as well.

"At least that could be a starting point, but what we do agree on is that the performances from the Sharks are just not acceptable anymore, and we expect more from them if you look at the quality that they have on their books."