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Kimberley - If the Sharks want to neutralise Crusaders centre Sonny Bill Williams in Nelson on Saturday, they will have to take a leaf out of the book of the triumphant Springbok team of 1995.
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That Bok team won the World Cup largely tanks to good defence - and the fact that feared All Black wing Jonah Lomu was neutralised in the process.
Williams and centre partner Robbie Fruean are standing broadly in the way of the Sharks as they aim to advance to the semi-final of the Super Rugby tournament. The Sharks certainly won't have fond memories of Twickenham where Williams cut their defence to shreds.
"They (the Sharks) will have to do the same with Sonny Bill than the Boks did with Jonah Lomu. Lomu was strong on his feet, but the Boks neutralised him. Williams is also strong on his feet and the Sharks will have to cut off possession to him as much as possible and tackle well," said Mark Andrews, 1995 World Cup winner with the Boks and former Sharks lock.
Williams this year established himself as the Crusaders' leading attacking weapon and the attention will be focused throughout on him and Fruean in their duel with the Sharks' centre pairing of Meyer Bosman and Stefan Terblanche.
Another 1995 Springbok World Cup winner, Hennie le Roux, also emphasised the threat that Williams poses.
"The duel between the centre pairings will be a great challenge. We know Sonny Bill is strong on his feet and that he tries to off-load in the tackle. The Sharks backline's defence will have to prevent him from getting that half gap," said le Roux.
"Travel will definitely be a factor. The Sharks have a tough match against the Bulls behind them and there is little recovery time before they play the Crusaders. But they have the ammunition to get the victory. Yes, no South African team has won a knockout game in New Zealand before, but only the media and journalists concern themselves with those statistics. It does not matter to the players," said Andrews.
Kimberley - If the Sharks want to neutralise Crusaders centre Sonny Bill Williams in Nelson on Saturday, they will have to take a leaf out of the book of the triumphant Springbok team of 1995.
WIN Newlands Super Rugby semi-final tickets
That Bok team won the World Cup largely tanks to good defence - and the fact that feared All Black wing Jonah Lomu was neutralised in the process.
Williams and centre partner Robbie Fruean are standing broadly in the way of the Sharks as they aim to advance to the semi-final of the Super Rugby tournament. The Sharks certainly won't have fond memories of Twickenham where Williams cut their defence to shreds.
"They (the Sharks) will have to do the same with Sonny Bill than the Boks did with Jonah Lomu. Lomu was strong on his feet, but the Boks neutralised him. Williams is also strong on his feet and the Sharks will have to cut off possession to him as much as possible and tackle well," said Mark Andrews, 1995 World Cup winner with the Boks and former Sharks lock.
Williams this year established himself as the Crusaders' leading attacking weapon and the attention will be focused throughout on him and Fruean in their duel with the Sharks' centre pairing of Meyer Bosman and Stefan Terblanche.
Another 1995 Springbok World Cup winner, Hennie le Roux, also emphasised the threat that Williams poses.
"The duel between the centre pairings will be a great challenge. We know Sonny Bill is strong on his feet and that he tries to off-load in the tackle. The Sharks backline's defence will have to prevent him from getting that half gap," said le Roux.
"Travel will definitely be a factor. The Sharks have a tough match against the Bulls behind them and there is little recovery time before they play the Crusaders. But they have the ammunition to get the victory. Yes, no South African team has won a knockout game in New Zealand before, but only the media and journalists concern themselves with those statistics. It does not matter to the players," said Andrews.
