Head coach John Plumtree is searching for positives as the remainder of the Sharks squad travelled to the UK on the back of a heavy loss to Cardiff in Durban on Saturday.

Cardiff were clinical in demolishing a second-string Sharks side in the round 17 match of the Vodacom URC at Kings Park. An early red card shown to Sharks flanker Tino Mavesere opened the floodgates for the Welsh visitors, who ran away 36-14 winners.

The Durbanites sent a contingent of senior players to London on Saturday to prepare for their historic Challenge Cup final against Gloucester at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in six days’ time.

Despite making 14 changes to the starting XV, Plumtree was confident in the buildup that the Sharks wouldn’t lack motivation when they tackled Cardiff, with places still to be won for the trip to the English capital.

But the tourists cruised to victory, securing a bonus point by half time through tries from Alun Lawrence, Ben Donnell, Willis Halaholo and James Botham, while Ben Thomas kicked three conversions.

“We started really well. We built a lot of pressure with the ball and we looked positive,” Plumtree was quoted in the media following Saturday’s defeat.

RECAP: Cardiff crush 14-man Sharks

“The red card had a massive effect on the game. We were one forward short against a really big Cardiff pack.

“We conceded a couple of pretty soft tries and that brought the scoreboard pressure. From then on, we were always going to struggle a bit.

“I was really pleased with the second half. We got ambitious and we moved the ball a little bit more and attacked in the wide channels and tried to do something a little bit different.

“However, on the day we weren’t quite good enough and there are quite a few guys in the squad that haven’t played in a while.

“It was a disappointing evening. I am disappointed for the boys. They wanted to do a bit more than that, but with 15 against 14 for 60 minutes, it was never going to be an easy task against a URC team.”

Mavesere’s dismissal has cost the loose forward a spot on the plane with the rest of the squad set to depart on Sunday. Plumtree added: “I thought Tino was playing really well until he got his red card. I am excited about his future.”

“It’s really disappointing for Tino. He was coming to London with us, and I guess he won’t be now.”

Photo: Henry Browne/Getty Images