The Sharks have been crying out for a culture rebuild, and it finally looks to be happening under head coach JP Pietersen.
For years now, the Durbanites have been viewed, and fairly so, as South Africa’s serial underperformers, boasting a star-studded squad jampacked with Springboks but have had little to show for it. One could point to the Challenge Cup title and a Currie Cup trophy, but the former was in 2024 and the latter two years prior, with the side not faring well enough in the United Rugby Championship.
This eventually led to John Plumtree’s departure, and after underwhelming season after underwhelming season, the Sharks conducted a high-performance review of their structures, employing the services of the highly regarded Alan Zondagh to do so.
A restructuring of the Sharks’ senior and junior rugby programmes followed, with Pietersen confirmed as the full-time head coach of the team going forward and the introduction of a Player Affairs & Culture department.
That last bit is crucial because it has been repeatedly pointed to as the reason why the team has underperformed so severely in the past, with reports stating that it was one of Pietersen’s main focuses when he officially took over from Plumtree.
Sharks’ culture problem and the Bongi Mbonambi incident
The former winger, who won the 2007 World Cup, has reportedly insisted that all players from seniors right through to the Springboks be held to the same standard with regard to their conduct off the field.
Zondagh identified a cultural problem when conducting his review, with Rapport stating that part of his findings included the conclusion that Springboks were being treated differently from other senior players in the squad – a source adding that they were able “to get away with murder”.
This all brings us back to Bongi Mbonambi, who is understood to be fit enough to train and play for the Sharks but is being excluded entirely amid a months-long disciplinary hearing that could result in the termination of his contract.
According to Rapport, this all stems from the Bok hooker disobeying Pietersen’s orders during a team bonding session at a private game reserve. The Sharks boss allowed the players to socialise on the Tuesday evening before switching focus to their training sessions in the build-up to facing the All Blacks in Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour.
Mbonambi, Trevor Nyakane and Eduan Swart reportedly ignored that instruction and continued partying into Wednesday morning when Pietersen confronted the trio, who carried on, with Fez Mbatha also involved.
Swart and Mbatha were given written warnings, with the report clarifying that they were first-time offenders influenced by the two World Cup-winning Boks. Nyakane missed the Tuesday meeting where Pietersen laid down the laws, but Mbonambi was present and ignored the ruling. Furthermore, the latter duo have reportedly failed to attend physiotherapy appointments and meet commercial obligations before, which has forced Pietersen’s hand.
What this all seems to boil down to is a new head coach attempting to stamp his mark, get rid of bad habits and poor standards that have been allowed to fester at the club, and pave a new way forward. That was never going to be an easy path; he was always going to have resistance, but if he is to actually create change, he must persist.
The Sharks have not disclosed any information on the proceedings, with a source simply telling IOL Sport: “Out of respect for the disciplinary process, the Sharks decline to comment.”
Pietersen followed a similar line when asked about Mbonambi’s absence, and understandably so. What it does reveal is that these matters are no longer being swept aside. Mbonambi is being made an example of, rightly or wrong so, it shows that there is a cultural shift taking place in Durban.
Why this needs to happen
Fans reacted to the news, stating that the head coach and franchise are overreacting to a simple team bonding incident, but it is, in fact, exactly the kind of thing that has to be stamped out. New standards are being set and they apply to all regardless of your status; that is the message that is being conveyed.
If the off-field antics remain the same and go unpunished, the on-field results will too, with the trend of underperformance and disappointing seasons continuing.
Pietersen is drawing a line in the sand and hammering home the point that no one is above the team, and this whole situation is a necessary evil to achieve that. Ma’a Nonu’s signing was another move to improve the culture at the club, but he isn’t going to fix everything for the Durbanites.
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It’s worth adding that both Pietersen and Nonu have performed in hugely successful and professional environments too and know precisely what is needed to get the team pulling together. The former not only won the World Cup back in 2007 but also played for the Wild Knights in Japan, where he worked under Robbie Deans; he then enjoyed a short stint at the Leicester Tigers before signing for French Top 14 giants RC Toulon.
All in all, while fans will be miffed with the whole process and that the club is paying a double World Cup-winning front rower to train alone, the Sharks are seemingly making the right moves to achieve long-term success.
As mentioned above, the culture has been a major issue in Durban for several seasons and can only change through drastic measures. That won’t guarantee a trophy this season or next, but it can certainly create a professional environment that breeds success. Things are changing at the Sharks and it’s not just the branding.
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