Key test for Sharks centres

Durban - Sharks coach John Plumtree is hoping his centre pairing will start to gel after reinstating Meyer Bosman and Marius Joubert to his starting XV for their Currie Cup encounter against the Platinum Leopards in Durban on Friday.

Bosman had struggled with his form and was dropped against Western Province last week.

Joubert, who joined the Sharks from French club Clermont Auvergne prior to the competition, had also failed to settle at his new home, although he had been hampered by an ankle problem.

"It’s up to them now, both have enough experience at the top level to know what the game’s all about,” said Plumtree.

"They’ve just got to work out how to play off each other, that’s the key thing.

"With Marius, it always takes a little bit of time to settle into a new place while Meyer got dropped after the Griquas game and I’m looking forward to seeing how he reacts to that."

The Sharks have won four out of their five matches so far, with the solitary blip coming in Kimberley against Griquas two weeks ago.

Teams:

Sharks:
15. Louis Ludik, 14. Odwa Ndungane, 13. Marius Joubert, 12. Meyer Bosman, 11. Sibusiso Sithole, 10. Frederic Michalak, 9. Conrad Hoffmann, 8. Ryan Kankowski, 7. Marcell Coetzee, 6. Jacques Botes (captain), 5. Ross Skeate, 4. Anton Bresler, 3. Wiehahn Herbst, 2. Craig Burden, 1. Dale Chadwick

Substitutes: 16. Kyle Cooper, 17. Eugene van Staden, 18. Alistair Hargreaves, 19. Keegan Daniel, 20. Charl McLeod, 21. Adrian Jacobs 22. Stefan Terblanche

Leopards:
TBA