Prop Thomas du Toit is fresh and itching to get his hands on Bordeaux in the Champions Cup rematch at Kings Park on Saturday.
The Sharks host the French Top 14 club after a second-string selection suffered a disappointing defeat to Connacht in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship last week.
Speaking during a media conference on Wednesday, Du Toit, one of several front-line players left at home for the URC clash in Galway, told reporters: “[Hearing] from the guys who came back from Connacht they’re really struggling, and it’s their second day back home, so the travel is real and it’s difficult.
“I can’t speak for the coaches … but I will tell you it’s probably a rotational system, giving guys who have been training very well and pitching up at training a chance in the big leagues.
“It’s also the perfect opportunity to have some guys rest, and we know with the travel schedule that it is very difficult to just pack up and play two games on the road. Or, a game on the road and then a massive game like this weekend against Bordeaux.”
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On whether he and the others are feeling rusty after their break, the 15-Test Springbok added: “I don’t think you’ll lose a lot of match fitness in a week that you rest, from my experience … maybe after two or three weeks at a time.
“The best-case scenario is you play every game and you will be match fit, or as match fit as you possibly can be, but I think it’s very important to not just have a physical break but a mental break as well.
“If you take the amount of minutes that most of these guys have played, week in and week out, it comes to just over 1,200 or 1,400 minutes already for the season.
“But, there’s a certain expectation that needs to be met after a week off – there’s no reason for rewarding someone for doing well and then resting [him] but then when you get back you don’t perform. So, 100 percent there’s definitely expectation [on the returning players] and we all realise that.”
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Neil Powell’s troops are unbeaten in the Champions Cup, having claimed an impressive win over Bordeaux in France on 17 December, which followed a thrilling maiden victory over Harlequins in the Republic a week earlier.
Du Toit added: “The most important match is the next one and we’re treating it like that. Winning at home is important, and winning this match is vital for us in the competition.
“We firmly believe that if we get good points this weekend, and hopefully more next weekend [against Harlequins], then we’ll obviously sit very pretty in the competition.”
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