Saturday’s opening Vodacom United Rugby Championship clash between the Hollywoodbets Sharks and Connacht in Galway, Ireland, marks the start of a new campaign.
Head coach John Plumtree is into his second season of URC rugby and he admits that a year on from this time last year when he had just taken over the coaching reins, the scenario is totally different now, which bodes well for the start of this challenge.
“It compares quite differently! Everything was tough last year, the coaches didn’t know each other and the group [of players] I didn’t know. I didn’t know their strengths, their weaknesses and we had a new game model we wanted to introduce.
“But we have a nice mixture of young guys and seniors, who all understand what we’re trying to do. We’re equipped with some good leaders which makes a massive difference and the coaching team is doing a great job.
“I’ve got them working well together, so there’s a lot more synergy around what we’ve got here. It’s a far happier, composed group.”
Last week’s Carling Currie Cup Final victory, plus the EPCR Challenge Cup trophy, is confirmation that the team is on the right path, but for Plumtree, it’s more than that.
“My mindset in a rugby team is always to get better. I challenge the boys all the time to get better every day. I’ve brought in a theme around if you want to be a winner, you need to be cursed by winning. And that’s about being the best you can be in every aspect of being a professional rugby player or coach, or whatever your role is in a team.
“Winners are cursed with the curse of wanting to win all the time and being consistent which is something I want to grow within this team. It doesn’t matter what you’ve done in the past, the mindset is about your next job which is to nail it.
“When you’re a winner or a champion, the focus is always around winning, be it training, recovery or the next game.
“So for me as a coach, it’s not about loading the players with the pressure of expectation.”
Following on from a successful run in the Currie Cup, Plumtree explains that they’ve had to manage the players and their workload, as well as mental space going into the URC.
“Our focus this week has just been around our recovery and putting our plan in place. After the long-haul trip to Galway, there’s been a lot of walk and talk, trying to save the players’ legs a little bit. We went harder at training on Thursday, but not much so that we can try make sure by the end of the week, the batteries are full.
“The boys have been great, the Currie Cup is done now and we move on to what the next job is.”
Shifting focus to the opposition, the Hollywoodbets Sharks coach warns what a tough opponent Connacht will be.
“Like any Irish side, they like to play a lot. They’re very structured and on attack, they like to expose you in the middle of the park and hurt you out wide by testing your defence.
“We’re expecting them to look to build pressure with the ball because they’re a well-drilled side and a team that’s been together for quite a while. So they’re tough to beat at home in these conditions, with a 5G pitch.
“So there are a few challenges for us, no doubt about that.
“It’s not going to be easy.”
Saturday evening’s match kicks off at 8.35pm.
