Hollywoodbets Sharks boss John Plumtree says it was important for his side to bag all five-log points on offer in their 41-24 URC win over Munster at Hollywoodbets Kings Park on Saturday.
The men in black and white will resume their campaign against the Stormers in Durban on 30 November, and head into the international break in ninth place on the URC standings.
“It’s great to have two wins at home in front of a good crowd tonight, which made it a bonus,” said Plumtree. “It was always the plan to try get some points on the board arriving back now before the break after a pretty tough tour.”
Despite having all but wrapped up the result with 10 minutes left on the clock, the Sharks were guilty of conceding two late tries for the second game in a row, which allowed Munster, and Glasgow Warriors before them, to bank a bonus point. With the play-off fight set to be as tight as ever, conceding those bonus points may yet come back to bite the Durbanites.
“It’s not ideal, is it [the way the Sharks are finishing games]? We didn’t want to concede at the end, but you’ve got to give some credit to the opposition. When they’re a few metres out from the tryline, they’re so ruthless.
“I thought our lineout defence was very good, it was just when they started their pick-and-go game. When it’s done properly, it’s pretty hard to stop. We’ll look at it, but it’s how we got into that situation, being five-metres out, which bothers me the most. Conceding a penalty and allowing them to kick in the corner, and then we’re under pressure. I think that’s part of the problem.”
Springbok scrumhalf Grant Williams was named Man of the Match in an exceptional display at the base of the scrum that produced a try and two assists. The Kiwi coach was delighted.
“He’s such a threat, isn’t he? Just any of those little spaces open up and he’s quick enough to take them. I thought he was excellent today. Some of his defensive work as well, his covering tackling [was great]. Munster are so dangerous with the ball, and we often had to scramble, and Grant was one of the best in that department.”
The result also marked Munster’s third defeat in a row, and they now occupy 12th-place on the overall standings. Head coach Graham Rowntree though was pleased at having ground out a losing bonus-point.
“We were certainly chasing their tails early on, weren’t we? But then we quickly had our own opportunities to get back, we were held up over the tryline, we missed a two-on-one. And then they could always go back to their power game.
“Obviously we knew they were going to have a good scrum and maul, but credit to them for their performance. I’m pleased with how we dug in there; we scrapped it out for a bonus-point.”
