Plum: No pressure on Hakeem

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Sharks coach John Plumtree says 21-year-old fullback Hakeem Kunene must "play his game" against Toulouse at Kings Park on Saturday.

Kunene represented the Junior Springboks at the 2023 World Rugby U20 Championship, and made five appearances for the Sharks in last year's Currie Cup before coming off the bench in their Investec Champions Cup match against Leicester in December.

Kunene replaces Springbok Aphelele Fassi, who had ankle surgery on Friday, in the Sharks starting XV.

When asked why he didn’t move Jordan Hendricks from 10 to 15 and start Siya Masuku at flyhalf, Plumtree said he was reluctant to break up the successful halfback combination of Jordan and his brother, Jaden.

"They're playing really well together, and Siya's not really an option for us at fullback. Hakeem played all his age-grade rugby at fullback and we're keen to see what depth we have there to back Fassi up. It's unfortunate for Siya, but that's the decision I made."

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Plumtree believes Kunene has what it takes to deliver against the six-time Champions Cup winners, who have brought a full-strength squad to Durban.

"We're hoping he handles all those big moments really well, and gets to attack in a bit of space, because he can be pretty dangerous. He came off the bench against Leicester and had a few little moments there.

"Toulouse also won't know anything about him and to be honest, we don't really know too much about him either," Plumtree added with a laugh.

"And there's no pressure on him. He just needs to go out there and play his game. He's a confident kid and is really excited about the opportunity. He hasn't looked flustered at training this week, he's just fitted in and is very coachable."

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Photo: Steve Haag/Gallo Images

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