The equation is simple for the Bull Sharks Premier Men — beat Souths at The Canal and stay in the finals hunt.
Sitting just one place below Souths on the ladder, this clash shapes as a make-or-break moment in the race for the top four. After last week’s emphatic victory over UQ, confidence is high. But Souths are a different beast, big men intent on overpowering their opponents. The Bull Sharks must stay in the fight.
In Colts 1, the Bull Sharks are flying high on top of the table, but will take the field without Jonah Rangiwai, who’s representing the Junior Wallabies at the U20s World Cup. It’s a huge honour for the young front rower and a well-earned reward for a standout season. His absence opens the door for fresh talent to step up as Rico Gear’s men look to continue their run.
And in the women’s game, the Bull Sharks will be chasing back-to-back wins after putting 82 unanswered points on Souths in their last meeting. Another polished, disciplined performance will be the goal as finals edge closer.
Bull Sharks v Souths at Souths
Premier Men
Last time they met
Bull Sharks won 29-21
We dominated possession and territory that day and the win was built off that. We went into half time 24-14 which was good, and we were able to stay in control from there.
The opposition
We are looking at Souths as the team in our way, if we want to make finals. They're the team one place above place above us on the table. They are generally dominant at the set piece, but we should match up ok against them. Our scrum has been a bit up and down, but Rhys Sherrif has been doing a good job. It is going to be a big battle up front.
The challenge
They are a massive team who play a power game. They try and score within a phase or two of getting the ball. They just try to overpower you. So, you've just got to stay in the fight against them.
The focus
It’s always a focus on defence, but competing our tackles will be important. And in attack, we have to control possession. If we make errors Souths are very good on the turnover. You've got to force them to play for long periods of time and keep them moving. They are a big side, and you have to try to tire them out. And then all going well, you get the pay off at the back end of the game.
Shuffling the magnets
We have some guys we are hoping will be able to come back in. Deon Evans-Ao-Leifi should be right. We don't know whether he'll come back in the first grade or not, but he should be playing this week. Hamish Roberts has twinged his hamstring, so he could be another week or so.
Finals ambitions
We absolutely think we can play finals. We worked really hard last week at training and we worked really hard in the game against UQ to make that scoreboard happen. So hopefully the penny has dropped to the players that that's what you have got to do to actually win games of footy. So, if we keep progressing, I think there's no reason why we shouldn't make finals and once you’re there the competition starts again.
The final word
We’ve actually got quite a good schedule because we've now got two more games, then we have a bye and then we have three games before finals. Obviously, the schedule is no help if you don't win. But assuming we're still in the hunt when we get to the bye, then we've got a pretty good lead in.
With Mick Heenan.
Colts 1
Last time they met
Bull Sharks won 45-17
We had a dominant set piece. Fergus Gillan led the forwards around the field really well. It was really won up forward which allowed the backs to play some football. That was probably the moment in the season when we started to realise what we are good at.
The opposition
They will pose a challenge. They are hovering around the top four, they are pretty good up front and dangerous out wide.
The challenge
They have a couple of Fijian boys in their backline who are dangerous players. We have to make sure we keep the ball away from them.
Shuffling the magnets
Jonah Rangiwai has been called up to the Junior Wallabies for the World Cup, so we’re excited for him. That gives us a chance to try to build some depth in the front row.
Sam Howarth is out, so we will bring Matti Walsh into the side, He’s been knocking on the door and has earned a spot, so the timing is good for us in that regard. And Jackson Jury is back from a concussion.
We have depth, there is plenty of cover which is exciting
The focus
We just want to tidy up our lineout. We scored one maul try last week but UQ were pretty good at disrupting us and South would have seen that and will try to implement similar tactics. We also need to tidy up our defence a bit.
With Rico Gear
Premier Women
Bull Sharks won 82-0
The side went in with a clear focus on eliminating errors with ball handling and around the ruck. They managed to do that which allowed to use the ball well to create a lot of scoring opportunities.
The opposition
Souths are currently sitting at the bottom of the ladder and will be looking for their first win of the season.
The challenge
For us the challenge at the moment is just our discipline. Offensively we need to be really sound, currently it's our weakest point.
Shuffling the magnets
There are lot of changes to the starting line this week. We will use this game to rest those players who have played all pre-season and for the start of QPR. We will keep some key players just so we take care of the game.
Ones to watch
Ones to watch include TJ Murray, she just keeps improving as a centre and Tiki Calliste who played on the wing for us on the weekend is going really well.
The focus
We will use this game to finalise our plans for Brothers the following week. However, we won’t take Souths lightly. We will play our key players and there are some other players that we think may start against Brothers next week that we want to see perform.
The final word
Discipline.
With Lawrence Faifua