JP Pietersen knows what the jersey asks of a player

The Sharks, a season ago, had all the big-name Springboks but very little to show in league standings in the United Rugby Championship (URC). Now the big names are less, but the identity is huge.

That is the change JP Pietersen is making at a club that spent too long being judged by the Springboks in its squad and not by the rugby it played.

The “Galacticos” tag was never a compliment. It said the Sharks had the stars, the money and the expectation, but not the performances to match.

Pietersen knows the difference. He was one of the most capped Sharks of his playing generation. He knows what the jersey asks of a player and what it means when a team plays with mongrel attitude and a collective sense of belonging.

The Sharks looked like a collection of reputations last season. They look more like a team now.

They are unbeaten in two home URC matches, beating Ospreys and Leinster, and were well beaten by the Stormers in Cape Town. That defeat mattered. It tested the talk of a new Sharks DNA against the best set piece in the competition.

Better evidence

The Sharks failed that test, but they did not lose their nerve or their direction.

The past fortnight has offered better evidence. In Lyon, they won 40-33 in the Challenge Cup after conceding a late try that levelled the scores.

They could have settled for the draw. Instead, they went again. Zekhethelo Siyaya helped create the winning try for Litelihle Bester in the final seconds. Then came Cardiff, where the Sharks won 36-21, scoring six tries and taking five URC points. They led 17-7, fell behind 21-17 and finished with three unanswered tries.

They lost André Esterhuizen in the opening minute, Phatu Ganyane in the first half, Jurenzo Julius at the break and Jason Jenkins soon after the restart.

A season ago, that sort of night might have become an excuse. In Cardiff it became a measure of the group. Pietersen’s Sharks absorbed the blows, reshuffled and found a way to win.

The clearest sign of the shift is Nick Hatton. He is maturing into a proper No 8 and leader — not simply a young forward with promise. He captained in Lyon, scored there, and was singled out by Pietersen for his leadership in Cardiff when the Sharks were under pressure and playing into the wind.

Emile van Heerden helped lead them through that spell too.

This is how a team gets a sense of belonging: responsibility is shared. It is earned on the field, not handed out with a Springbok cap or a big-name signing.

Balancing act

The Sharks have also found a way to balance experience with youth. Hatton is 23. Matt Romao, a product of the Junior Springboks, scored twice in Cardiff. Siyaya was electric in Lyon and lively again against Cardiff.

Jurenzo Julius cut open the Welsh defence before injury ended his night. Ethan Hooker finished a sharp early move in Cardiff, while Lili Bester delivered the decisive score in France and Ethan Bester also scored in Wales.

That is individual brilliance within a team framework. The young players have room to play, while experienced campaigners bring calm when the game tightens.

Pietersen’s playing history gives him credibility, but that alone does not change a dressing room. The Sharks are changing because the standard is clearer: compete when the game gets ugly, stay connected when plans are disrupted, and back the player beside you.

The Cardiff result will count for five points. The manner of it counts for more. The Sharks have spent seasons being told they should be better because of the names on the team sheet.

Under Pietersen, they are beginning to look better because they play for one another.

They have attitude and mentality that is expressed as a collective in how they respond to challenges.

The very best Sharks team, historically, have always been about the collective and not the individual. For the past few seasons this was lost in Durban.

Pietersen, from the moment he took charge, insisted his squad would have an identity. They do.