JP Pietersen has admitted he was nervous about integrating his returning Springboks on just one training session before the Sharks' 26-20 win over Leinster, but says the gamble paid off emphatically as his side moved to the top of the URC table with a perfect 10 points from two matches.
Andre Esterhuizen, Edwill van der Merwe and Thomas du Toit were restored to the starting line-up for the Leinster clash, with Ox Nche, Eben Etzebeth and Ethan Hooker among the replacements — all having had only a single Thursday training run with the squad before Saturday's match.
"I was quite nervous before the game. We only had one training session with them, on Thursday," Pietersen said. "They never looked off."
Etzebuizen and Van der Merwe combined in the build-up to Esterhuizen's try, a score Pietersen confessed he barely saw unfolding. Van der Merwe then sealed the bonus point with an intercept try in the closing minutes — the kind of individual brilliance Pietersen credits to his Springboks contingent operating outside the system.
"The rest of the group is all about doing the right thing, letting the system work. And the Springboks do what they need to do."
The back-to-back bonus-point wins — the first a 41-24 defeat of the Ospreys — represent a sharp turnaround from last season, when the Sharks finished 10th and missed the play-offs. Pietersen is candid about just how unexpected the start has been.
"You can see I'm stuttering, I'm still processing that we won two and have 10 points. It's unreal."
The Sharks lead Cardiff, the Lions and Edinburgh by a single point. They travel to Cape Town to face the Stormers on Saturday.