Sharks coach JP Pietersen was visibly enthused after watching teenage debutant Luan Giliomee light up Kings Park in a statement win over Munster.
The 19-year-old announced himself in style, scoring a try and playing a key role in a dominant Sharks display where they blanked the 2022-23 Vodacom URC champions 45-0.
Pietersen told the media after the match that the youngster is built for the big stage.
“Gilly is a special kid, man. If you look at his schoolboy history, Craven Week and obviously the Blitzboks, he’s been really good. You can see he’s got BMT. He just belongs on that field and he never looked out of place.
“I was excited to see this kid and he showcased what he can do. What made it special today is that he played with Makazole [Mapimpi] in his 100th game.”
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Giliomee’s impact was not limited to his try, with a crucial 50:22 assisting in loosehead prop Phatu Ganyane’s try.
It was a performance that underlined the Sharks’ growing belief, but Pietersen was quick to keep things in perspective.
“I’m not getting ahead of myself with this performance. We’re still way off from [the top] eight. Our performance today doesn’t look like a team that’s supposed to be in the bottom half of the log, so we’ll celebrate tonight, but we’ll have a hard review on Monday.
“We play Cardiff on Friday, so it’s a quick turnaround and we still have a big job to do to get into the top eight.”
Up front, the Sharks pack laid the platform for victory, delivering a physical display that set the tone from the outset.
“It takes a collective to scrum well. It’s not just one guy or three guys at the front, but a collective effort from the pack of eight. They wanted to make a statement today as a pack and they made that statement.”
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Among those who caught the coach’s eye was Ganyane, who continues to grow in stature against top-level opposition.
“You must give it to young Phatu, hey. He’s only 23 and scrumming against international props. He did it against the Bulls, Stormers and tonight against [Michael] Ala’alatoa who’s also an international prop. It’s very special to see all the hard work that Phatu’s put in come off.”
Photo: Steve Haag/Gallo Images
The post JP hails ‘special kid’ Giliomee appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
