Sharks v Cheetahs – who’s hungrier?

The Sharks will field a strong team against the Cheetahs, as the Durban side heads to Bloemfontein in Round 2 of the 2013 Super Rugby tournament.

The Sharks team features the strong front-row trio of Mtawarira, Burden and du Plessis, who will give their Cheetah’s counterparts a tough time.

The Sharks’ loose trio will also be a handful for the Cheetahs, as the forward pack is also boosted by the return of Ryan Kankowski, who wrapped up his contract in Japan.

The young Springbok fly-half contenders of Johan Goosen and Pat Lambie will come up against one another, and should to be an interesting comparison of who shines the brightest.

Francois Steyn has taken over the captaincy from the injured Keegan Daniels, and his size and precense will be used against the fleet-footed Robert Ebersohn.

Out wide is where the fireworks of either team are, as Cheetahs flyer Raymond Rhule was outstanding in the Currie Cup and will now be looked to in order to pierce defences in Super Rugby.

Willie le Roux was also a standout performer in 2012, and his playmaking work in the midfield is a strong point too.

For the Sharks, JP Pieterson, Louis Ludik and Mvovo round off the Sharks back three, who all pose the threat of tearing any defence to pieces.

Sharks team:

15. Louis Ludik, 14. JP Pietersen, 13. Paul Jordaan, 12. Francois Steyn (captain), 11. Lwazi Mvovo, 10. Patrick Lambie, 9. Cobus Reinach, 8. Ryan Kankowski, 7. Marcell Coetzee, 6. Jacques Botes, 5. Franco van der Merwe, 4. Anton Bresler, 3. Jannie du Plessis, 2. Craig Burden, 1. Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16. Kyle Cooper, 17. Wiehahn Herbst, 18. Pieter-Steph du Toit, 19. Jean Deysel, 20. Charl McLeod, 21. Meyer Bosman, 22. Odwa Ndungane.

Cheetahs team:

Cheetahs: 15 Hennie Daniller, 14 Willie le Roux, 13 Johann Sadie, 12 Robert Ebersohn, 11 Raymond Rhule, 10 Johan Goosen, 9 Piet van Zyl, 8 Philip van der Walt, 7 Pieter Labuschagne, 6 Frans Viljoen, 5 Francois Uys, 4 Lodewyk de Jager, 3 Lourens Adriaanse, 2 Adriaan Strauss (captain), 1 Trevor Nyakane.
Replacements: 16 Ryno Barnes, 17 Coenie Oosthuizen, 18 Waltie Vermeulen, 19 Johannes Prinsloo, 20 Sarel Pretorius, 21 Elgar Watts, 22 Ryno Benjamin.

Rugby Informer’s take: The Cheetahs scored some of the best tries in last year’s Super Rugby competition, and the talent of Goosen, among others, can’t be denited. That said, the Sharks loose trio and star-studded backline will be too much for the Cheetahs to handle at home. Sharks by 15.