THE Sharks under John Plumtree have always been fitter than most

THE Sharks under John Plumtree have always been fitter than most but they have been punished on the training field even more than ever this pre-season given the frenetic pace of the ball-in-hand game they will play in the Super 15, which they sucessfully pioneered in the Currie Cup.
Last year, All Blacks coach Graham Henry said his team won the Tri-Nations primarily because they were the fittest team on the planet, as they needed to be for the blistering pace at which they played, and the Sharks played a similar style to the Kiwis in the Currie Cup.

“The players are getting there in terms of their conditioning,” Plumtree said with his typical understatement. “There are a few big forwards who need to lose a bit more body fat before the first game (against the Cheetahs on February 19) but the way we are training, they will get that off. The players know they have to be fitter than ever so we have not been shy with the conditioning.”

The man setting the example yet again is Currie Cup captain Stefan Terblanche. Plumtree said the veteran had started the new year with five kgs of muscle added to his wiry frame while he had somehow lost a little body fat too (Terblanche has been the leanest Shark for years in terms of body fat percentage).

“John Smit has also done really well. After recovering from his neck operation (in September) he has worked extremely hard and by the first game will have lost about eight kilograms.”

The Sharks meanwhile are looking to bolster their scrumhalf depth by securing Tian Meyer – one of their recent age group stars – from the Pumas. The Westville High School old Boy captained the Sharks under-21 team before taking up a contract in Witbank, but with Rory Kockott now at the Lions, there is a need for backup to Charl McLeod and Conrad Hoffman (formerly of Western Province). Ross Cronje is also an option. Meyer is on loan from the Pumas and if a deal cannot be struck, will return to them after the Super 15.
BY Mike Greenaway www.iol.co.za