{"id":8848,"date":"2025-06-06T10:12:40","date_gmt":"2025-06-06T08:12:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/?p=8848"},"modified":"2026-03-12T10:32:22","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T08:32:22","slug":"sharks-kolisi-confident-ahead-of-urc-semifinal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/sharks-kolisi-confident-ahead-of-urc-semifinal\/","title":{"rendered":"Sharks\u2019 Siya Kolisi Confident Ahead of URC Semifinal Clash with Bulls at Loftus"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Sharks captain Siya Kolisi believes that the resilience shown by his team in recent weeks has set the perfect foundation for their highly anticipated United Rugby Championship (URC) semifinal against the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld this Saturday evening. Despite facing criticism for inconsistent performances earlier in the campaign, the Durban outfit have clawed their way into the final four. This was achieved through sheer determination and grit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-sharks-riding-wave-of-momentum\"><strong>Sharks Riding Wave of Momentum<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Their quarterfinal win over Munster last weekend, settled in a nerve-wracking penalty shootout after 100 minutes of rugby ended 24-24, is just the latest example of their fighting spirit. In fact, four of their last five matches have gone down to the wire, yet the Sharks have emerged victorious each time. Often they come from behind to seal the win. Notable turnarounds against Edinburgh, Ulster, Scarlets, and now Munster have proven that this squad has the steel to survive high-pressure moments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"gaute-1058066500\" class=\"gaute-inbetween-content gaute-entity-placement\" style=\"margin-top: 30px;margin-bottom: 30px;margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;text-align: center;\"><div class=\"gaute-adlabel\">Advertisement<\/div><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1852772760112594\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1852772760112594\" \ndata-ad-slot=\"1819787043\" \ndata-ad-format=\"auto\" data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\n<script> \n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); \n<\/script>\n<\/div><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-character-built-through-adversity\"><strong>Character Built Through Adversity<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Siya Kolisi, a two-time Rugby World Cup winner, credits the team\u2019s development and squad depth for their recent success. Speaking ahead of the Loftus showdown, he reflected on the value of learning to win ugly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve discovered something special about ourselves \u2014 that we can stay in the fight. In the past, we might have lost those close contests, but now we\u2019re finding ways to win,\u201d Kolisi said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He praised the squad\u2019s growth, particularly the contributions of fringe players who have stepped up when called upon. \u201cI remember our game against the Bulls at home in December when we were missing several key players. The guys who came in really stood tall, and that\u2019s been a theme all season.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Kolisi also acknowledged that while their performances haven\u2019t always been polished, the results speak for themselves. \u201cPeople will always have opinions about how we play. But what counts is winning, especially on the road where it\u2019s never easy, like we did in Edinburgh and Ulster.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-not-underestimating-the-bulls\"><strong>Not Underestimating the Bulls<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Siya Kolisi is well aware of the threats posed by the Bulls, who boast a strong pack and potent backline. While the Sharks have beaten their Pretoria rivals twice already this season, the skipper knows that nothing is guaranteed in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.citizen.co.za\/sport\/rugby\/we-fight-kolisi-sharks-prepare-bulls\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">knockout rugby<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve studied them and we know their strengths,\u201d he said. \u201cThey\u2019re dominant from lineouts and mauls, and their loose forwards have been excellent. Cameron Hanekom is having a standout season. Players like Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Ruan Nortje, and Marcell Coetzee make them formidable up front.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Kolisi also highlighted the impact of the Bulls\u2019 backline, led by the experienced Willie le Roux and the dangerous Embrose Papier at scrumhalf. \u201cTheir ability to counter-attack and punish turnovers means we have to be sharp across the field.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"gaute-897119963\" class=\"gaute-inbetween-content gaute-entity-placement\" style=\"margin-top: 30px;margin-bottom: 30px;margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;text-align: center;\"><div class=\"gaute-adlabel\">Advertisement<\/div><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1852772760112594\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1852772760112594\" \ndata-ad-slot=\"1819787043\" \ndata-ad-format=\"auto\" data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\n<script> \n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); \n<\/script>\n<\/div><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-sticking-to-their-game-plan\"><strong>Sticking to Their Game Plan<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite the strengths of their opponents, Kolisi insists that the Sharks will focus on their own game rather than being reactive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s tough to plan for a team with so many weapons, so we\u2019re concentrating on executing our strategy. If we play our game to the best of our ability, we believe we can reach the final.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With their confidence surging and a string of comeback victories behind them, the Sharks will be banking on their trademark resilience. They aim to carry this resilience past the Bulls in what promises to be a ferocious all-South African semifinal battle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Also read: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/bulls-vs-sharks-urc-knockout-thriller\/\">Bulls vs Sharks: URC Knockout Clash Promises Another Thriller<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sharks captain Siya Kolisi believes that the resilience shown by his team in recent weeks has set the perfect foundation for their highly anticipated United Rugby Championship (URC) semifinal against the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld this Saturday evening. Despite facing criticism for inconsistent performances earlier in the campaign, the Durban outfit have clawed their way<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":8868,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_focus_keyword":"","rank_math_title":"","rank_math_description":"Sharks captain Siya Kolisi believes that the resilience shown by his team in recent weeks has set the perfect foundation for their highly anticipated United...","footnotes":""},"categories":[56,64],"tags":[1341,415,784,2288],"class_list":{"0":"post-8848","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports","8":"category-sports-news","9":"tag-rugby-news","10":"tag-sa-rugby","11":"tag-urc","12":"tag-urc-knockout"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8848","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8848"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8848\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8873,"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8848\/revisions\/8873"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8868"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8848"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8848"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gauteng.net\/whats-on-g\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8848"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}