Eben Etzebeth: ‘It’s the best memory ever at club level’
Hollywoodbets Sharks captain Eben Etzebeth described his side’s 36-22 win over Gloucester in the EPCR Challenge Cup final at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as the best of his club career. Etzebeth praised his team’s character for making history by becoming the first South African franchise.
The win secured their place in next season’s Invetec Champions Cup and came after a dreadful United Rugby Championship season in which they missed the play-offs and won just a handful of matches.
Etzebeth cited the Sharks’ poor season as a major motivation for the finals.
“The motivation was high on the team,” Etzebeth said. “It was great to turn things around the way we did after where we were 4 or 5 months ago. The silver lining to our season was a big drive to win the Challenge Cup, which wasn’t great.
“If you had told us at the start of the season that we would win the EPCR Challenge Cup and qualify for the Invetec Champions Cup, we would have accepted it.
Eben Etzebeth: ‘It’s the best memory ever at club level’
“The win was special, and it felt like we saved our best performance for last. The boys were incredible and the physicality was great.
This is the best memory so far at club level. The last championship I won was the Currie Cup in 2012, so it has been 12 years.
“It’s the first international trophy the Sharks have won and being the first South African to win in Europe is definitely one of my best memories ever.”
Eben Etzebeth: ‘It’s the best memory ever at club level’
Hollywoodbets Sharks head coach John Plumtree said: “We wanted to apply a lot of pressure up front because we knew that would probably be their strength, so by taking that away we knew we’d have a good chance.
“I thought the scrum was outstanding, and the forward drive was very good and they earned the award for that. So was the pressure from our kicking game.
“A lot of it was based on the scoreboard pressure, which we had to create, and credit to the guys for sticking to the plan.”
The Sharks have one URC game remaining this season and it will be against local rivals Vodacom Bulls.