Sharks v Bulls: Teams

The derby in Durban should be a cracker with it being a must-win for both the Sharks and Bulls.

At Kings Park, Durban, Saturday May 21, Kick-Off 18.10 BST

In the first of two derby clashes to come this season, the Sharks host the Bulls at Kings Park in what is shaping up to be one of the clashes of the weekend. The Bulls are just seven points off the Sharks and eight off the Stormers and have plenty of motivation going into the final five weeks of the pool stages to perform well and finish strongly. Gaining four points and seeing the Stormers lose to the Chiefs in Hamilton last weekend means the Cape side's lead over the Sharks has been whittled down to just one point and this week's crunch match against the Bulls is the perfect opportunity for John Plumtree's men to remain on track to finish top of the South African conference. Beating the Bulls would also place further breathing space between themselves and the men from Pretoria. The Bulls come to Durban on a mission, knowing that a loss could well put their season in severe jeopardy as they look to emulate their recent successes in the tournament. For the Sharks, fifth place is a guaranteed quarter-final berth but they will be looking to improve on that in the hope of playing at home, resulting in this game having huge meaning for both sides, which means fans can expect a massive clash on Saturday. After five losses from 11 starts, the Bulls have pinpointed this as a "must win clash". "The reality is that another defeat will again be a step back for us. The Sharks will be a huge challenge in Durban," said Bulls halfback Fourie du Preez. The message that the Bulls are talking up this match as a Cup final is a little premature according to Sharks coach Plumtree. "It's a bit early for that five rounds out," he said. "We've been in a similar situation to them and yes, it does add spice to the game although Bulls-Sharks clashes have always been big encounters. Games between the two are always highly physical, and I don't expect it to be any different this Saturday." Sharks: 15 Louis Ludik, 14 Odwa Ndungane, 13 Stefan Terblanche (c), 12 Meyer Bosman, 11 JP Pietersen, 10 Patrick Lambie, 9 Charl McLeod, 8 Willem Alberts, 7 Jean Deysel, 6 Jacques Botes, 5 Alistair Hargreaves, 4 Steven Sykes, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16 Craig Burden, 17 Eugene van Staden,18 Gerhard Mostert, 19 Marcell Coetzee, 20 Conrad Hoffmann, 21 Adrian Jacobs, 22 Lwazi Mvovo. Bulls: 15 Zane Kirchner, 14 Bjorn Basson, 13 Jaco Pretorius, 12 Wynand Olivier, 11 Francois Hougaard, 10 Morné Steyn, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Dewald Potgieter, 6 Deon Stegmann, 5 Victor Matfield (c), 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 Werner Kruger, 2 Chiliboy Ralepelle, 1 Dean Greyling.
Replacements: 16 Gary Botha, 17 Rossouw de Klerk, 18 Flip van der Merwe, 19 Danie Rossouw, 20 Derick Kuün, 21 Francois Brummer, 22 Gerhard van den Heever.