Hollywoodbets Sharks head coach John Plumtree says the nature of his side’s last-gasp 18-17 URC round 15 win over Edinburgh at the DAM Health Stadium on Friday felt slightly like a pre-season encounter.
The result means the fourth-placed Durbanites have maintained the pressure on the Bulls (third) ahead of the Pretoria side’s clash with Munster in Limerick today. For Sean Everitt’s men, who are now seventh, the home defeat all but ensures they will drop out of the top eight altogether by the end of the weekend.
Said Plumtree: “I thought the Edinburgh skillsets were outstanding in these conditions, certainly way better than ours. They came out and were more physical to start with, they dominated the gainline, they put us under the pump physically.
“And we never really got going in the game, so I was pleased that in the second half we got a little bit more momentum going. But we had some opportunities, and we missed goals.
“But I was really proud of the boys. They were tough at the end of the game, on the goal line there. I thought Edinburgh could have sealed the game, but we held on.”
The Sharks were rescued by a Makazole Mapimpi try after the final hooter to salvage the what was a niggly affair that saw returning Springboks Eben Etzebeth and Lukhanyo Am both shown yellow cards within a minute of one another.
“It felt a bit like a pre-season hit-out for us,” said the Kiwi boss. “I don’t want to make any excuses, we’ve got a lot of stars in our team, but Edinburgh were outstanding tonight and they’ve got their own stars.
“I think the expectation is that we just roll out this team and it wins every week, but we have to work for it. We’ve got this win under our belt, but hopefully next week we’ll be a lot better and will be able to carry a bit more confidence into the next three games.”
The men in black and white are next in action against Ulster in Belfast in seven days.
