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'We were poor and didn’t deserve to win,' says Sharks coach Fynn after Currie Cup loss

Sharks players on the bench during the Carling Currie Cup match against the Pumas at Hollywoodbets Kings Park on May 06.
Sharks players on the bench during the Carling Currie Cup match against the Pumas at Hollywoodbets Kings Park on May 06.
Image: Steve Haag/Gallo Images

Sharks coach Etienne Fynn was disappointed with the level of sharpness of his players in their Currie Cup 20-10 defeat to the Pumas in Durban on Friday.

Fynn’s men had a poor start to the match at Kings Park Stadium as they trailed the Pumas 17-3 at halftime.

The hosts made a lot of errors that were punished by the Jimmy Stonehouse-coached outfit.

The Sharks’ attempts at a comeback in the second stanza were successfully dealt with by the visitors.

“The Pumas totally deserved the win. We were poor and sadly we didn’t deserve to win this game,” Fynn said.

“We need to work on basically all aspects of our play, essentially sticking to the plan, but more importantly when you get an opportunity to score we must take advantage of it.

“When they get to our half we have to close down their opportunities. As a group we’ve got to own this loss and move forward positively on Monday because we have the Free State next Saturday and we all know what a good side we are up against,” he said.

Having last played a month ago, Fynn expected some rustiness from his men but he didn’t think it would be so bad.

“The season is far from over. After a long break I did expect some rustiness, obviously not that extensive rustiness,” he said.

“Our sharpness was lacking, but the season is far from over. We are looking forward to correcting our mistakes and showing all our supporters a very different performance next Saturday.”

Despite suffering their third defeat, the Sharks remain in position three on the Currie Cup log table with 24 points.

They will need to push themselves really hard in the final three pool matches if they are to achieve a home semifinal.

In their next match, Fynn’s men travel to Bloemfontein to play the unbeaten Cheetahs on Saturday, May 14 (2.30pm).

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