'Not our standards yet, but it’s better,' said Sharks captain Eben Etzebeth, while prop Ox Nche said they must appreciate all the wins they can get.
Sharks stars Eben Etzebeth and Ox Nche said the team is still far from their best, but they are perhaps on the right track following their 29-19 win over Scarlets at Kings Park on Saturday.
The star-studded side sported 12 Springboks in their starting XV and two more on the bench as they finally secured their first victory of the United Rugby Championship after three defeats and a draw.
The bonus-point win lifted the Sharks only one place on the URC table, to 13th.
The Durban side made errors on attack and even more on defence. They missed tackles and switched off mentally at one point, allowing the visitors to score within a few phases of the restart — just as they did the week before against Ulster.
‘Not our standards yet’
“I think this group can become much better than we are currently,” said Etzebeth, who was back as captain.
“There is still plenty to look at, plenty to improve on. Not our standards yet, but it’s better.”
He and Nche, who earned man of the match, especially for his work at scrum time, said they would happily accept the five points.
“I mean, it’s a win. We have to appreciate all the wins that we get,” Nche said.
The loosehead prop added that the team was very inconsistent, but needed to build on the momentum of the win.
Etzebeth added, “It starts with us, as individuals on the field. We want to get that hunger to play for this team, put in a good performance for this team, then it will go better.”
Sharks to regroup after Springbok tour
The captain added the Sharks did not demonstrate that hunger at home to Ulster last weekend, “but we are going to get there”.
“It’s a work in progress. Once we are done with a massive end-of-year tour lying ahead, and we come back, we can climb into a full season.”
Etzebeth was referring to the Springboks’ five-match tour against Japan, France, Italy, Ireland and Wales on consecutive weekends in November.
The Sharks return to the URC against Connacht on 29 November – the same day the Springboks finish their tour against Wales.
