Sharks boss: Masuku is our general at 10

13/04/2024 07:31

Neil Powell has backed Siya Masuku to help steer the Sharks to a key win on Saturday, meaning Curwin Bosch will have to make his milestone appearance from the bench.

Despite it being Bosch’s 100th game for the Sharks, Masuku has seized the No 10 jersey after making his Sharks debut as a substitute against the DHL Stormers on 17 February.

The 27-year-old playmaker has since started five successive matches in all competitions, and is set to play a pivotal role when the Sharks and Edinburgh clash in this week’s Challenge Cup quarter-final at Kings Park.

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“Masuku is somebody that we obviously saw last year when he was still playing for the Cheetahs,” Sharks director of rugby Powell was quoted by News24.

“We saw the attributes that he had that we liked, and I think he’s an all-around good flyhalf that does everything well.

“He defends well, he can take the ball to the line if he wants to, he distributes the ball well and then there’s his kicking game.

“I think he’s a good general for the team and we’ll expect more of that on Saturday. I think he is good in his decision-making as to when to sit a little bit deeper and when to attack the line.

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“He likes to try to create something around that 10 channel… He’s been very good since he got his opportunity to start in the jersey.”

Bosch scored an impressive solo try against Zebre coming off the wood last week, and Powell highlights Bosch’s selfless commitment to team success over personal accolades.

“He’ll play where the team needs him and, at the moment, he’s coming off the bench to make a difference for us,” he said.

“That’s exactly what he did last week, so we’ll look at him to build on last week’s game and give us another good performance off the bench.

“It’s great to have guys who put the team first, even though they have big personal milestones.”

Photo: Steve Haag Sports/Gallo Images

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