Win was 'critical' for Sharks

The Sharks produced a strong defensive display to beat the Argentinians and make it two wins from two in the competition after their 43-8 win over the Southern Kings in Round One.

With the Jaguares and the Lions, who bagged an impressive win against the Chiefs in New Zealand earlier in the day, in the same conference as the Sharks, Gold was thrilled with the four points. 

"It was critical - it's important to beat the teams that are in our pool," said Gold at the post match press conference. 

"It would have been a proper banana skin if we had lost at home against the team that is in our pool. 

"It is such a weird format because ordinarily in a competition where you play everybody, a win is critical in deciding who goes up and down the table. When you beat a team, you get the points and they don't get the points so it’s a double whammy. 

"You don't have that situation anymore with the exception of three teams in your pool."

Gold said the senior players in the pack paved the way for victory, especially at scrum time.  

"There was a lot of fantastic input from our senior players. Lourens [Adriaanse] and Coenie [Oosthuizen] took great responsibility at scrum time. 

"I was really happy with the way the scrums went and I was happy with the way the mauls went," he added.

Gold also believes Saturday's win was good preparation for when they face the New Zealand teams later on in the tournament.  

"We got Kiwi teams in our section and tonight was a good exercise for how we are going to have to deal with the Kiwi teams in terms of their offloading game and our workrate off the ball," said Gold.

"We could wallow on the things that didn't go well tonight or we could choose to celebrate the things that we have improved in. I think the answer probably lies in having the humble balance and realising that we are a long way from being the finished product." 

By Warren Fortune

@FortuneWarren

@rugby365com