Sharks vs Edinburgh preview: Kick-off time, teams, officials

Sharks vs Edinburgh preview: Kick-off time, teams, officials

Sharks vs Edinburgh takes centre stage in the Challenge Cup quarter-finals on Saturday from 13:30.

Edinburgh return to Kings Park a few weeks after suffering a URC defeat to John Plumtree’s team.

Team news: Sharks vs Edinburgh

Edinburgh welcome back South African born Scotland international Pierre Schoeman.

Co-Captain Grant Gilchrist will mark his 200th appearance in the big match at Kings Park.

Edinburgh Rugby Head Coach, Sean Everitt, said: “I’d firstly like to congratulate Grant [Gilchrist] on reaching 200 appearances for the club. It’s a fantastic achievement for a top professional who truly bleeds Edinburgh. This is his club and I know how much it means to represent this city and our supporters week in, week out

“After arriving in Durban earlier this week, we’ve continued to prepare well for what is a massive fixture for the club. We’ve spoken all week about the collective belief needed to win on the road in tough conditions. We’ve done it before and will need those same levels of energy and commitment once again.

“It’s great to welcome Pierre [Schoeman] back to the starting line-up. He’s a quality player with a huge amount of experience at the very top level of rugby. His return only strengthens our pack.”

He continued: “We’ve taken a lot of belief from last weekend’s knockout win against Bayonne. That second-half set the standard of how we want to perform moving forward into the crucial business end of the campaign.”

Sharks welcome back Eben Etzebeth

Hooker Bongi Mbonambi, analysing Edinburgh and the team they will put out for this match, expects a top, challenging encounter from the Scots.

“It’s a quarter-final, they will bring their best team, hoping to advance to the semi-finals,” he admits.

He also said: “We’re preparing for their best team.”

From his own team’s point of view, he explains that they are firstly in a good place right now. Secondly, they are motivated to be successful this weekend and beyond.

“The mood in the camp is good, there’s a lot of energy and the injured guys coming back, like Emile van Heerden, Eben Etzebeth and Vincent Koch, make a big difference to the forward pack.

“The road to the final won’t be easy, but for now our focus is on the quarter-final and getting over that and that’s how we move forward in this competition, how we get better.”

Sharks vs Edinburgh: Teams

Sharks: 15. Aphelele Fassi, 14. Werner Kok, 13. Lukhanyo Am (captain), 12. Ethan Hooker, 11. Makazole Mapimpi, 10. Siya Masuku, 9. Jaden Hendrikse, 8. Phepsi Buthelezi, 7. Vincent Tshituka, 6. James Venter, 5. Emile van Heerden, 4. Eben Etzebeth, 3. Vincent Koch, 2. Bongi Mbonambi, 1. Ox Nche.

Replacements: 16 Dan Jooste, 17 Ntuthuko Mchunu, 18 Hanro Jacobs, 19 Corne Rahl, 20 Lappies Labuschagne, 21 Grant Williams, 22 Curwin Bosch, 23 Francois Venter.

Edinburgh: 15 Wes Goosen, 14 Jake Henry, 13 Mark Bennett, 12 Matt Currie, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Ben Healy, 9 Ben Vellacott (cc), 8 Viliame Mata, 7. Hamish Watson, 6 Jamie Ritchie, 5 Grant Gilchrist (cc), 4 Sam Skinner, 3 WP Nel, 2 Ewan Ashman, 1 Pierre Schoeman.

Replacements: 16 Dave Cherry, 17 Boan Venter, 18 D’Arcy Rae , 19 Jamie Hodgson, 20 Luke Crosbie, 21 Ali Price, 22 James Lang, 23 Chris Dean.

Match information

Date: Saturday, April 13

Venue: Kings Park, Durban

Kick-off: 13.30 (12.30 UK & Ireland time; 11.30 GMT)

Referee: Matthew Carley (England)

Assistant referees: Anthony Woodthorpe (England), Adam Leal (England)

TMO: Ian Tempest (England)