Pietersen's leadership gamble: Can four captains carry the Sharks to URC glory?

The Sharks head into the new URC season with a deliberate and bold captaincy structure and head coach JP Pietersen wouldn't have it any other way.

The Springbok hybrid, André Esterhuizen, has been named captain of the Durban-based franchise, headlining a 67-man squad targeting glory across both the URC and European competitions.

Flanking him is a trio of co-captains, Emile van Heerden, Nick Hatton, and Vincent Tshituka.

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Esterhuizen at the helm but not always in the building

Speaking to the media on Thursday Pietersen was candid about the reality that Esterhuizen will miss some stretches of the campaign due to Springbok commitments ahead of a Rugby World Cup next year.

Rather than treating the skipper's absences as a weakness, the coach placed his trust in his supporting leadership who he believes is more than capable to steer the ship.

“André will probably be back in the Leinster game if things go well, but it places great responsibility on the players to share the ownership,” said Pietersen.

“I think Nick did well in the Currie Cup, he had two campaigns as a leader. Vinny (Vincent) Koch has huge experience, Pepsi (Buthelezi) has got experience, Emile van Heerden has got a lot of experience, so it's a good mix with Vincent Tshituka also there. They took ownership about it and it helps me also as a coach and also holds me accountable if I slack a little bit.”

Prop Vincent Koch reinforced the mood, praising the group's collective buy-in and noting that aligning returning Springboks with the club's direction will be an early priority.

The 26/27 URC campaign co-incides with next years Rugby World Cup, and there's no doubt that Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus call on his Boks to be present at alignment camps.

Pietersen adds instead of disrupting their campaign, the World Cup could become a big motivator in his side’s performance.

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“With it being a World Cup year (next year) I think it will be great, and it will just boost the players that wants to get back into that Springbok mix and wants to get an opportunity to perform and show Rassie that they still want to be part. The young guns would also want to put their hand up.

“So we can just control what we can control at the Sharks and take it game by game and not look too far ahead.”

Sharks upcoming fixtures

The Sharks open at home against the Ospreys before hosting Leinster, the fixture Pietersen has earmarked as Esterhuizen's likely return, then travel to the Mother City for a derby against the Stormers.

Related tags

Andre Esterhuizen Emile van Heerden JP Pietersen Nick Hatton Sharks Rugby United Rugby Championship Vincent Tshituka