The Bull Sharks return to The Canal this weekend with a point to prove.
The Premier Men put in their worst performance of the season when they played Norths last year and coach Mick Heenan has no doubt reminded his players of that.
With fourth spot on the line at the halfway mark of the season, it’s a crucial clash against an improved outfit hot on their heels.
Norths boast one of the biggest forward packs in the competition and a 140kg winger who’s been hard to contain — but Bond will take confidence from recent improvements.
In Colts 1, Rico Gear is expecting more discipline and execution from his young group after a lacklustre showing against GPS.
With some key players returning and a renewed focus on getting the basics right, the side will look to repeat last year’s gritty win over Norths.
Bull Sharks v Norths at The Canal
Premier Men
Last time we met
Round 14, 2024 at The Canal
Bull Sharks lost 38-21
It was a limp performance and our worst of the season. We were out muscled, out thought and outperformed. Some changes to personnel in key positions meant our set piece were at its worst for the entire year.
The opposition
Norths have improved from last year, they’re a win behind us on the table so they’ll be desperate to win. It’s the end of the first round this week and we’re fourth on the ladder so everyone below us is chasing us to try and get that spot.
The challenge
They’ve got a big forward pack, and they throw the ball around a lot. They've got a 140kg winger who is a real focal point of theirs and Wests last week handled him really well so that gives us a read on what to do to manage him.
The focus
We’re just focussed on improving ourselves every game, we tweak things depending on what the opposition is going to throw at us but us our real focus is just on getting our processes, systems and execution better every week.
Shuffling the magnets
Starting halfback, Liam Daniela went off with concussion last week, he's pulled up well but will miss a week. Luckily, we’ve got Jordan Lenac who played his first game back from injury last week.
The final word
I’m proud of the guys to fight their way back into the competition. The next couple of weeks with Norths and Wests are really important, then we have a bye where we can have a well earned rest.
With Mick Heenan
Colts 1
Last time they met
Rd 13, 2024 at The Canal.
Bull Sharks won 21-17
The win was set up with a powerhouse opening 15 minutes where the side score 21 points through maul and wide attack. They dug in at the end with some great defence.
The opposition
Norths are pretty similar to Jeeps. They don’t have many real stars, but they work hard and they have a couple of good tough forwards who try their guts out.
The challenge
I think we just have to show up with attitude and effort. We had a few too many blokes who weren’t quite switched on last week and it cost us.
Shuffling the magnets
We hope to have our front rower Jake Leck back. Charlie Wake has been away for three weeks. He is a good player, and we’re excited to have him available this week.
The focus
Some of the basics have hurt us the past month and we have been consistently making mistakes in the back line, and we really need to address it. We haven’t reached the skill level we are capable of so we he have been plugging away at the basic skills.
With Rico Gear
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