No coach likes to lose, but DHL Western Province boss Allister Coetzee was a proud man after his new-look side’s spirited display against the Sharks at DHL Newlands on Saturday.
Coetzee made a mammoth 14 changes ahead of the Sharks clash – a game which DHL WP eventually lost 20-28 – but the five starting debutants and four further newbies on the bench did their province proud.
“I was very, very proud of the entire team,” Coetzee told www.wprugby.com on Sunday.
“The team had a fantastic first half after a nervous start, which saw the Sharks score an early try. We led 20-11 and had played some good rugby up until then (half-time).
“Unfortunately, we weren’t able to maintain that momentum with our set-piece letting us down a bit. We had to replace (lock) Gerbrandt Grobler, given that it was his first match back since October 2013. But I’m not just blaming the line-out we couldn’t get our hands on the ball at all in the second half.”
***CLICK HERE FOR SEMIFINAL TICKETING NEWS!***
DHL Western Province, of course, had already secured a home semifinal before the final round of 2014 Absa Currie Cup league action – and, with that, a right to a home final should they progress that far – and the coach was happy with his experiment.
Said Coetzee: “We’ve got more answers than questions after this match.
“Knowing that we can rest 14 players and we can still come up with a performance like that is incredible.
“We know we have the right players here and we have the depth going forward, and in my opinion it is purpose served and if I had the chance to play it over again – I would have done the same thing,” he added.
“Some players showed that they can play at this level. I don’t want to single players out, but the likes of Gerbrandt Grobler, Sikhumbuzo Notshe and Pat Howard stood out… and that was the whole idea, I wanted players to put their hands up and push for semifinal selection.”
DHL Western Province will play host to the Vodacom Blue Bulls at DHL Newlands on Saturday (kick-off 17h00) in one of two 2014 Absa Currie Cup semifinals this weekend.
Not only is it DHL WP’s sixth semifinal in a row, but the 2012 champions and 2013 runners-up will be eyeing up a third successive final and, in total, a fourth tournament finale in five years.
“We will have a bigger squad back at training this week and we will also assess the likes of Justin Geduld and Seabelo Senatla, when they rejoin us from the Gold Coast Sevens,” explained Coetzee.
“We have some pleasant headaches (selection-wise), but we know what we need to do this (in the semifinals) and will prepare accordingly in what is going to be a big game in front of our amazing DHL Newlands supporters, the Faithful.”
* Match ticket sales will open on Monday, October 13 at 12h00. Tickets are priced at JUST R90 (for standing) and range from R150 to R250 (for seating) and can be purchased from wprugby.ticketpros.co.za.
You can also buy your match tickets directly from the DHL Newlands Box Office (Tuesday to Friday – 09h00-16h00 and Saturday – 09h00-17h30), or from selected Western Cape Spar stores and PostNet branches (nationwide). (See the full list of stores and/or branches here.)
All 2014 DHL Newlands season tickets ARE VALID for the 2014 Absa Currie Cup semifinal at DHL Newlands on October 18. However, season ticket holders will have the first option to purchase their existing seats should DHL WP progress to the 2014 Currie Cup Final on October 25.
