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Pieter Jordaan
Johannesburg - Lions coach John Mitchell could cause major panic for his good friend John Plumtree on Saturday when the Lions face the Sharks in a crucial Super Rugby match.
Just months ago a similar scenario played itself out when the teams met in a Currie Cup match in Johannesburg. With the Sharks on course for the semi-final, their campaign was almost derailed.
The Lions' semi-final hopes had just about been dashed prior to that, but what followed was a match they considered their best in the tournament that year. A winning try off the last move of the game gave the Lions a 22-20 win at Coca-Cola Park.
Fortunately for Plumtree, the Sharks still did enough to make it to the semi-finals and went on to win the Currie Cup.
There will be a lot of needle in Saturday's match. It's the Lions' last game in the tournament because their second bye arrives in the final round of league games.
The Sharks are currently fifth on the log, but if they lose to the Lions and the Bulls and Waratahs win their respective games against the Stormers and Highlanders, the Sharks may drop down to seventh.
Only the top six sides advance to the knockout rounds.
Mitchell and Plumtree, who have known each other since their young days in New Zealand, are therefore preparing for their most important duel to date.
The Lions improved to such an extent on their recent tour of Australasia that they are being given a chance to win on Saturday.
Just like in last year's Currie Cup, the Lions' visit to Durban in the Super Rugby tournament yielded a big defeat of 3-27.
And now a confident Lions team awaits the Sharks in Johannesburg. The Lions are no longer able achieve anything on the log, but Mitchell views it as a huge game.
"Not at all," answered Mitchell when asked whether the game would serve as preparation for the Currie Cup.
"This is Super Rugby. We want to win our last home game to achieve our goals for the end of the season. The Sharks smashed us at Kings Park and we were soft opponents then. I hope we have learned from that," said Mitchell.
The Lions will train at home for the first time on Tuesday since returning from New Zealand. Their performances overseas were of such a nature that Plumtree will probably issue his players with a serious warning of the onslaught they could expect in Johannesburg.
Johannesburg - Lions coach John Mitchell could cause major panic for his good friend John Plumtree on Saturday when the Lions face the Sharks in a crucial Super Rugby match.
Just months ago a similar scenario played itself out when the teams met in a Currie Cup match in Johannesburg. With the Sharks on course for the semi-final, their campaign was almost derailed.
The Lions' semi-final hopes had just about been dashed prior to that, but what followed was a match they considered their best in the tournament that year. A winning try off the last move of the game gave the Lions a 22-20 win at Coca-Cola Park.
Fortunately for Plumtree, the Sharks still did enough to make it to the semi-finals and went on to win the Currie Cup.
There will be a lot of needle in Saturday's match. It's the Lions' last game in the tournament because their second bye arrives in the final round of league games.
The Sharks are currently fifth on the log, but if they lose to the Lions and the Bulls and Waratahs win their respective games against the Stormers and Highlanders, the Sharks may drop down to seventh.
Only the top six sides advance to the knockout rounds.
Mitchell and Plumtree, who have known each other since their young days in New Zealand, are therefore preparing for their most important duel to date.
The Lions improved to such an extent on their recent tour of Australasia that they are being given a chance to win on Saturday.
Just like in last year's Currie Cup, the Lions' visit to Durban in the Super Rugby tournament yielded a big defeat of 3-27.
And now a confident Lions team awaits the Sharks in Johannesburg. The Lions are no longer able achieve anything on the log, but Mitchell views it as a huge game.
"Not at all," answered Mitchell when asked whether the game would serve as preparation for the Currie Cup.
"This is Super Rugby. We want to win our last home game to achieve our goals for the end of the season. The Sharks smashed us at Kings Park and we were soft opponents then. I hope we have learned from that," said Mitchell.
The Lions will train at home for the first time on Tuesday since returning from New Zealand. Their performances overseas were of such a nature that Plumtree will probably issue his players with a serious warning of the onslaught they could expect in Johannesburg.
