Neil Powell says the Sharks have taken a step in the right direction by getting back on the winning road in the Challenge Cup after a poor start to the season.
The Sharks ended a run of three consecutive losses by claiming a bonus-point win over French side Oyonnax in Durban on Saturday afternoon, qualifying for the Challenge Cup playoffs in the process.
The hosts were without head coach John Plumtree, who returned to New Zealand for family commitments.
“The biggest positive was the win,” said director of rugby Powell. “It’s something that’s much needed for us.
“It was by far not a perfect performance, but it was definitely a foundation for us to build on in the next game. We knew that the team we played out there was not the best Oyonnax team; they probably could have sent a better team to play us. So, we’re not fooling ourselves that this was their best team.
“But like I said, it was a much-needed win for us and a foundation.”
The Sharks had gone into Saturday’s game with just two wins in 11 games in all competitions.
Powell was impressed by how his side had righted some of the errors in last week’s defeat to the Lions.
“Defensively, I thought we were good. Kicking game-wise I think at times we could have been more clinical in our decision-making in terms of when to kick and when to run. In attack, the handling errors [were disappointing] and maybe the discipline is something we need to work on for next weekend.
“We wanted to rectify our mistakes from last weekend; a soft half and soft moments in that game cost us. For us the focus this week was almost to get the season back on track, to almost close the door on what’s happened in the past and say this is a new start for us.
“Hopefully we can build on this with our game against the Dragons [next week] before we hit the Stormers in the middle of Feb.”
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