The time for excuses is over as the Sharks head into their third Vodacom URC campaign under coach John Plumtree, writes SIMON BORCHARDT.
The Sharks never clicked last season, and it was only by grinding out wins they perhaps didn’t deserve that they managed to finish third on the log.
One of those results came in Edinburgh, where Plumtree welcomed back a fit-again group of Springboks – including Eben Etzebeth – for a match that Bulls counterpart Jake White described as the strongest South African provincial team he had ever seen.
The Sharks edged it 18-17 with a late try, after which Plumtree compared his star-studded side to a racehorse still finding its stride before the big event.
That gallop never came.
They won ugly again against the Scarlets in their final league match in Durban, and needed a penalty shootout to beat Munster in a tense quarter-final, before being knocked out by the Bulls in the Loftus semi-final.
Plumtree spent much of the season lamenting injuries and Bok rest protocols, but that has become part of the URC reality for South African coaches. Etzebeth (seven appearances) and Grant Williams (eight) featured only sporadically due to injury, while Test commitments and mandatory breaks limited Ox Nché (above) and Siya Kolisi to 13 matches apiece.
The key for the Sharks in 2025-26 may be how they perform without their Boks – particularly during a tough opening tour that includes matches against Glasgow and defending champions Leinster.
KEY PLAYER
Jordan Hendrikse won over Sharks fans soon after his move from the Lions, slotting a match-winning 59m penalty against his former team in the 2024 Currie Cup final. Playing fullback that day, he began the URC season at 15 before supplanting Siya Masuku as the Sharks’ first-choice flyhalf. Hendrikse went on to start 11 URC matches at 10, including the quarter-final and semi-final. The 24-year-old earned two Test caps last season but is not currently part of the Springbok squad, which could make him available to the Sharks throughout the 2025-26 campaign. Along with his long-range boot, Hendrikse’s skill, vision and agility will be vital in sparking a backline that often struggled to create and finish scoring opportunities last season.
PLAYERS IN
Ross Braude (Pumas)
Marvin Orie (Bulls)
Eduan Swart (Pumas)
Edwill van der Merwe (Lions)
PLAYERS OUT
Batho Hlekani* (Lions)
Eduan Keyter (Lions)
Gerbrand Grobler (TBC)
Henry Immelman (Bulls – end of loan)
Ntuthuko Mchunu (Stormers)
Khwezi Mona (Exeter)
Dylan Richardson (Edinburgh)
James Venter (Gloucester)
Cameron Wright (Narbonne)
*Contract ends 31 December
FAST FACT
The Sharks lifted the South African URC Shield in 2024-25 after winning four of six matches against local opposition.
URC FIXTURES
26 September: Glasgow (a)
3 October: Dragons (a)
11 October: Leinster (a)
18 October: Ulster (h)
25 October: Scarlets (h)
29 November: Connacht (a)
20 December: Bulls (h)
27 December: Lions (a)
3 January: Lions (h)
24 January: Stormers (a)
31 January: Stormers (h)
28 February: Bulls (a)
21 March: Munster (h)
27 March: Cardiff (h)
18 April: Ospreys (a)
24 April: Edinburgh (a)
9 May: Benetton (h)
16 May: Zebre (h)
Introducing the new 2025/26 VURC jersey
Shop now at The Shark Cage and online
pic.twitter.com/QkecZk6k6n
— The Sharks (@SharksRugby) September 19, 2025
Photo: Sydney Seshibedi/Gallo Images
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