HOLLYWOODBETS SHARKS VS ASM CLERMONT AUVERGNE

EPCR WELCOME MESSAGE

A warm EPCR welcome to the Twickenham Stoop – or, for this weekend’s EPCR Challenge Cup semi-final between the Hollywoodbets Sharks and ASM Clermont, the Shark Tank!

We are delighted to have two iconic clubs battling it out for a place at the EPCR Challenge Cup Final at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in three weeks’ time.

The Hollywoodbets Sharks joined the EPCR adventure last season, and this season we welcome them making history as the first South African team to be in an EPCR Final.

Meanwhile, ASM Clermont already has a story written in the EPCR history books, as three-times winner of this competition, the EPCR Challenge Cup. They will be looking to add a fourth title to their collection by advancing onwards today.

Today’s fixture promises to be a truly fascinating contest between two clubs who have never met before.

And what a star-studded line-up we will have today, with international representation in both squads. A true treat of rugby for the clubs’ travelling fans, and indeed the rugby-hungry residents of London.

This match kicks-off our very own “Super Saturday”, which features the two EPCR Challenge Cup semi-finals – Hollywoodbets Sharks against ASM Clermont, and Gloucester Rugby versus Benetton Rugby at Kingsholm – before the Investec Champions Cup semi-finals get underway as Leinster Rugby take on Northampton Saints in Croke Park. Tomorrow, the action continues with Harlequins facing Stade Toulousain at Le Stadium in Toulouse – and I’m sure many eyes today will be on that match. At this stage of our competitions, we have clubs from five nations chasing the ultimate prize.

What a feast of rugby to enjoy over the course of the weekend.

On behalf of EPCR, I would like to thank Harlequins for opening their doors to us for this EPCR Challenge Cup semi-final. With a strong South African expat community in south-west London, the Hollywoodbets Sharks have rallied the troops and turned this marvellous stadium into their own.

We have had a superb series of pool stage fixtures, followed by a feast of attacking rugby in the two knockout rounds to date, and new EPCR records have already been set for attendances, television audiences and social media engagement.

We are delighted to be joined on the journey to London by our partner family: Investec, DHL, IHG Hotels & Resorts and Georgia Rugby Marketing Hub, as well as by our official supporters, Tissot, Gilbert and Kappa, and also by our official airline partner in South Africa, Qatar Airways.

TNT Sports, ITV, RTÉ and Premier Sports in the UK and Ireland, beIN SPORTS and France Télévisions in France, and SuperSport in South Africa continue to provide comprehensive and innovative broadcast coverage, while FloRugby in the USA and Canada are showcasing the matches to more viewers than ever across the globe.

To all fans who have travelled to support their teams today – whether from overseas or from closer by – we thank you for your continuing support of the tournament.

So, whether you are supporting the Sharks or Clermont, or whether you’re simply looking forward to a thrilling EPCR Challenge Cup semi-final in this rugby heartland of SW London, we hope that you enjoy the match and best wishes from everyone at EPCR.

Yours in rugby, Dominic

McKay, EPCR Chairman

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GAME

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MATCH PREVIEW

ETHAN HOOKER INTERVIEW

HOLLYWOODBETS SHARKS PLAYER PROFILES

HOLLYWOODBETS SHARKS VS ASM CLERMONT AUVERGNE

KICK OFF 12H30

ASM CLERMONT AUVERGNE PLAYER PROFILES

MAJOR MATCHUP

BUTHELEZI VS LEE

FACTS, STATS & TRIVIA

FIXTURES & RESULTS

EPCR CHALLENGE CUP

LOG

EPCR CHALLENGE CUP

SPONSORS

THE SHARKS

MATCH PREVIEW

ONWARDS AND UPWARDS

Today’s EPCR Challenge Cup semi-final between the Hollywoodbets Sharks and Clermont Auvergne at The Stoop has shaped up as one of the most important fixtures in the proud 134-history of the Durban-based side. The significance of this knockout game stretches beyond merely qualifying for the final and a chance of winning the prestigious competition…

The Hollywoodbets Sharks couldn’t have wished for a better run-in leading to this EPCR Challenge Cup semi-final.

John Plumtree’s charges have now won five of their last six matches, both in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship and Challenge Cup. Their only recent loss was away against the Glasgow Warriors (10-21) a fortnight ago, but that was with a young and inexperienced second-string side, that put up a highly spirited show, as a host of Springboks were given a well-deserved breather.

As far as the Champions Cup specifically is concerned, the Hollywoodbets Sharks have won five of their six games and topped their pool with 17 points. Moreover, they have scored both the most points (224) and tries (31) in the competition.

Someone who has been favourably impressed with the Hollywoodbets Sharks’ form of late, is former Springbok and Sharks skipper, Gary Teichmann.

“Establishing a successful team culture does take time and, in that regard, Plum is the right man for the job. They still need to look at various aspects of the whole Sharks setup and get a few things right, but they do have quality players.

“People also don’t always understand the impact of the Boks in the squad. They bring such confidence to the younger players, and initially, during the early stages of the URC, the Boks were not regularly enough available.”

As far as today’s opposition is concerned, Clermont Auvergne certainly does pose a major challenge. The French club have already won the Challenge Cup on three occasions and have been runners-up in the Investec Champions Cup three times.

“The addition of the English and French clubs into the mix does ensure that the Challenge Cup is also a highly competitive tournament,” Teichmann says.

The added significance of ultimate success in the Challenge Cup, however, is that it offers automatic qualification for the next Champions Cup.

PEOPLE ALSO DON’T

“Having had to endure such an arduous start to their URC season, the Hollywoodbets Sharks’ confidence no doubt took quite a hammering,” says Teichmann, who captained South Africa in 36 tests and The Sharks in four Super Rugby playoffs and three Currie Cup finals.

“On the way forward, they will come up against pretty strong competition, like Clermont today, and it will be exciting to see how they respond to the challenge.

“The growth of the team over the past month or so was really nice to see and would have done their confidence a world of good. Confidence goes a long way towards the success of a team.”

Besides boosted confidence, there is also no lack of top-class talent in the Hollywoodbets Sharks’ mix.

“The thing is, one can have a whole squad of superstars, yet they might not necessarily be a team,” Teichmann observes.

ALWAYS UNDERSTAND THE IMPACT OF THE BOKS IN THE SQUAD...

“That is important,” Teichmann agrees. “The Champions Cup is far more prestigious and also financially hugely beneficial.

“Plum’s attitude, though, will still be to take things game by game, and not to look too far ahead.

“However, the Hollywoodbets Sharks have got themselves into this favourable position and now it is up to them.

“One of the dangers when one enters a semi-final can be too much confidence. Considering the tough times that they have been through over the past six months, however, I doubt that they will be over-confident.

“Plum will keep their feet on the ground. Moreover, the Hollywoodbets Sharks will be mindful of just what a huge impact ultimate success in the Challenge Cup will have on the recovery of their season.”

WORDS: ALBERT HEENOP

A MINDSET OF WINNING

That is what the Springboks bring to the party. Over the past three decades, triumphant Bok representatives have invariably inspired The Sharks to be ultimately successful as well. Following South Africa’s matchless conquering of back-to-back World Cup titles last year, the current contingent of Boks in the Hollywoodbets Sharks’ mix are intent, too, on carrying that victorious mindset into the EPCR Challenge Cup playoff arena…

Who could forget South Africa’s maiden participation in the Rugby World Cup, and as hosts to boot, back in 1995?

The Springboks stunned the rugby world by unceremoniously knocking over the defending champions, Australia, during the opening game of the tournament and then pipping the mighty All Blacks to the crown in the epic final at Ellis Park.

Three of the most courageous members of that legendary Bok team were Sharks. The gutsy performances of André Joubert, with a fractured hand in the semi-final, the irrepressible James Small and rangy Mark Andrews have been immortalised in the Bok saga, and the trio subsequently inspired back-to-back Currie Cup triumphs for The Sharks in 1995 and 1996.

Fast forward 12 years, to 2007, and another Sharks stalwart, John Smit, piloted South Africa to a second RWC crown in France, with fellow Sharks, Percy Montgomery, JP Pietersen, Frans Steyn and Butch James all playing prominent parts in that campaign, and, particularly, the nail-biting win against England in the final.

That Bok commitment and accomplishment once again spilled over into the domestic scene, in 2008, with The Sharks, coached by a certain John Plumtree, clinching their first Currie Cup title in 12 years, and they would repeat the feat in emphatic fashion two years later.

More recently, Hollywoodbets Sharks’ stars Eben Etzebeth, Bongi Mbonambi, Vincent Koch and Makazole Mapimpi etched their names in rugby history by tasting back-to-back RWC success in 2019 and 2023.

The man who will be leading the Hollywoodbets Sharks onto The Stoop for today’s Challenge Cup semi-final, and one of the heroes of RWC 2019, Lukhanyo Am, would no doubt have joined the above-mentioned elite, had he not been injured ahead of last year’s global showpiece in France.

“Winning the World Cup has meant the world to me,” Am acknowledged after the tournament five years ago

“It’s the biggest achievement I could ever have dreamt of. The World Cup experience has given me a lot of confidence.

“One has to go into any competition with the mindset of winning it.”

Am oozes that mentality every time he leads the Hollywoodbets Sharks out of the tunnel, and as such the mere presence of him and his fellow Bok colleagues means the world to the rest of the team.

Of Etzebeth, for example, The Guardian, one of the UK’s leading newspapers, had the following to say after RWC 2023:

“Etzebeth dominates a rugby match just by standing there. Martin Johnson had that. “People are glad to be in the same team as such players.”

The selfsame Guardian also raved about the phenomenon that is Hollywoodbets Sharks’ powerhouse prop, Ox Nché, following South Africa’s heart-stopping semi-final win against England:

“Ox Nché, as his name suggests, is a formidable scrum adversary and the replacement prop’s second-half demolition job on Kyle Sinckler ultimately proved

bit as crucial as Handré Pollard’s nerveless, match-clinching 78th-minute penalty from close to halfway.”

The affable Nché, however, is humility personified, and always puts the team, whether it be the Boks or Hollywoodbets Sharks, first.

“It came down to a team effort,” he said about that World Cup playoff.

“As scrummaging forms such an important part of our game, we knew what we wanted to achieve as a pack and everybody bought into the plan. We invested in our scrum and everyone believed in it.

“We gave it our all. It was all about being in the moment every single time.”

Giving it everything and being in the zone will be crucial ingredients towards ensuring ultimate success for the Hollywoodbets Sharks today, too, and the Boks will no doubt lead the way.

HOLLYWOODBETS SHARKS PLAYER PROFILES

HOLLYWOODBETS SHARKS PLAYER PROFILES

KOCH

LUKHANYO AM

FASSI

BORN: 10/11/1998 HEIGHT: 1.95m BORN: 30/05/1999 HEIGHT: 1.88m WEIGHT: 107KG WEIGHT: 102KG

WEIGHT: 97KG

122KG BORN: 14/03/2000 HEIGHT: 1.82 m VINCENT TSHITUKA PHEPSI BUTHELEZI

GRANT WILLIAMS BORN: 23/03/2000 HEIGHT: 1.79m WEIGHT: 87KG

BORN: 28/11/1993 HEIGHT: 1.86 m WEIGHT: 93KG

FEZOKUHLE MBATHA NTUTHUKO MCHUNU

BORN: 2/10/1999 HEIGHT: 1.82

GROBLER LAPPIES LABUSCHAGNE CAMERON WRIGHT

BORN: 22/02/1999 HEIGHT: 1.84m WEIGHT: 83KG

HOLLYWOODBETS SHARKS

APHELELE FASSI

WERNER KOK

LUKHANYO AM ( C )

ETHAN HOOKER

MAKAZOLE MAPIMPI

SIYA MASUKU

GRANT WILLIAMS

PHEPSI BUTHELEZI

VINCENT TSHITUKA

JAMES VENTER

EMILE VAN HEERDEN

EBEN ETZEBETH

VINCENT KOCH

BONGI MBONAMBI

OX NCHE

FEZ MBATHA

HEAD COACH

JOHN PLUMTREE

MANAGER

TREVOR BARNES

NTUTHUKO MCHUNU

HANRO JACOBS

GERBRANDT GROBLER

LAPPIES LABUSCHAGNE

CAMERON WRIGHT

BOETA CHAMBERLAIN

FRANCOIS VENTER

ALEX NEWSOME

BAUTISTA DELGUY

JULIEN HERITEAU

GEORGE MOALA

JORIS JURAND

ANTHONY BELLEAU

BAPTISTE JAUNEAU

FRITZ LEE (C)

PECELI YATO

MARCOS KREMER

TOMAS LAVANINI

ROB SIMMONS

RABAH SLIMANI

EIENNE FOURCADE

GIORGI BERIA

YOHAN BEHEREGARAY

GIORGI DZMANASHVILI

CRISTIAN OJOVAN

THIBAUN LANEN

KILLIAN TIXERONT

PITA-GUS SOWAKULA

THEO GIRAL

LEON DARRICARRERE

ASSISTANT REFEREES

KARL DICKSON & MATTHEW CARLEY TMO

CHRISTOPHE URIOS

MANAGER

BENOIT VAZ

HEAD COACH

ASM CLERMONT AUVERGNE PLAYER PROFILES ASM

BORN: 11/11/1999 HEIGHT: 1.75 m WEIGHT: 108KG

BORN: 19/04/1989 HEIGHT: 2.04 m WEIGHT: 115KG

BORN:17/01/1993 HEIGHT: 1.96m WEIGHT: 120KG

BORN: 19/01/1993 HEIGHT: 1.83 m

BORN: 18/10/1989 HEIGHT: 1.78 m WEIGHT: 112KG

118KG

BORN: 12/09/1994 HEIGHT: 1.82 m WEIGHT: 96KG

BORN: 22/04/1997 HEIGHT: 1.83 m WEIGHT: 84KG

BORN: 20/01/1995 HEIGHT: 1.89m

WEIGHT: 93KG

WEIGHT: 118KG

BORN: 29/08/1988 HEIGHT: 1.88m

BORN: 22/01/1993 HEIGHT: 2.00 m WEIGHT: 108KG

BORN: 30/07/1997 HEIGHT: 2.00 m WEIGHT: 110KG

BORN: 17/11/2003 HEIGHT: 1.78m WEIGHT: 81KG

BORN: 29/05/1996 HEIGHT: 1.80m

WEIGHT: 102KG

BORN: 16/06/2002 HEIGHT: 1.86m

WEIGHT: 122KG

BORN: 04/01/1997 HEIGHT: 1.83m

WEIGHT: 120KG

BORN: 22/01/2002 HEIGHT: 1.96m

BORN: 19/03/1998 HEIGHT: 1.98m WEIGHT: 107KG WEIGHT: 109KG

BORN: 26/10/1994 HEIGHT: 1.90m

WEIGHT: 117KG

BORN:11/11/1995 HEIGHT: 1.88m

BORN: 08/04/1996 HEIGHT: 1.77m WEIGHT: 100KG WEIGHT: 85KG

BORN: 05/11/1990 HEIGHT: 1.88 m WEIGHT: 106KG

BORN: 04/02/2003 HEIGHT: 1.79m

BORN: 4/06/2004 HEIGHT: 1.82m

JORISJURAND

ANTHONY

FRITZ LEE (C)

ETIENNE FALGOUX

RABAH SLIMANI

TOMAS LAVANINI

BAPTISTE JAUNEAU

GIORGI BERIA

ROB SIMMONS

PECELI YATO

KILLIAN TIXERONT

THIBAUD LANEN

BAUTISTA DELGUY

JULIEN HERITEAU

ALEX NEWSOME

GIORGI DZMANASHVILI

YOHAN BEHEREGARAY

CRISTIAN OJOVAN

DARRICARRERE

SCRUM-HALF

PITA GUS SOWAKULA

INDEPENDENT

SHARKS VS ASM CLERMONT AUVERGNE

MAJOR MATCHUP BUTHELEZI VS LEE

We predicted a couple of years ago that it would only be a matter of time before Phepsi Buthelezi followed in the footsteps of legendary No 8s in black and white, like Tom Bedford, Wynand Claassen and Gary Teichmann.

Recently, Hollywoodbets Sharks’ coach, John Plumtree, also suggested that the 24-year-old loose forward dynamo could emulate World Cupwinning captain, Siya Kolisi, as a world-beating openside flanker. “He is relentless around the park and has a great work rate,” Plumtree said.

For now, though, Buthelezi is the Durban-based side’s in-form No 8, and, judging by his marauding performances of late, a key player in today’s EPCR Challenge Cup semi-final.

Leading Clermont Auvergne in the Challenge Cup playoff against the Hollywoodbets Sharks today, Fritz Lee (35) not only brings typical Polynesian power and passion to the confrontation but also heaps of European experience.

Born in Samoa but bred in New Zealand, Lee represented Counties Manukau and the Chiefs, as well as the All Blacks Sevens, before signing with Clermont more than a decade ago.

He is closing in on 250 caps for the French outfit and also represented Samoa at last year’s Rugby World Cup in France. He has 11 test caps for Samoa under his belt.

FACTS, STATS & TRIVIA

TWICKENHAM STOOP, OUR “STOEP”!

Legendary former Bok captain, Tom Bedford, dubbed Natal “The Last Outpost of the British Empire” in 1974. Fifty years on Britain is providing a home-from-home for the Hollywoodbets Sharks, hosting today’s big EPCR Challenge Cup semi-final. The Durban-based side’s association with The Stoop, as a matter of fact, goes back more than 20 years, writes Albert Heenop…

“Well, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to London’s Heathrow Airport.”

The early morning announcement by the air hostess, on February 3, 2002, signalled the start of The Sharks’ historic first trip to the United Kingdom to play Harlequins in a friendly, pre-season hitout at the Twickenham Stoop.

Ed Coetzee, The Rookie

That Sharks squad of 22 years ago included a 22-year-old tighthead prop by the name of Eduard Coetzee, who had the unenviable task of trying to contain, at scrum time, Quins’ 33-year-old Jason Leonard - already a gnarly veteran of 94 tests for England and five for the British & Irish Lions. I sat next to Coetzee on the team bus as it negotiated its way through London’s hectic peak-hour traffic towards, as it was known then, the Stoop Memorial Ground. Although pensive, the young cornerstone of The Sharks’ pack appeared calm and collected, and would go on to help establish a solid platform for The Sharks to eventually run out comfortable victors to the tune of 31-13.

Dr Ed Coetzee is back at The Stoop today as CEO of the Hollywoodbets Sharks.

Master Mac

The Sharks returned to The Stoop for four years on the trot, for what had become an annual preseason fixture against Quins until 2005.

During the visit in 2003, The Sharks touring party were honoured by the presence of the late, great godfather of Sharks rugby, Ian McIntosh, adding a tad of extra inspiration.

Before kickoff, Mac bought me a polystyrene cup of coffee to help combat the UK winter chill and asked where I was sitting, so I invited him along to The Stoop’s press box and offered him a piece of paper for his notes.

Nobody was more passionate or knowledgeable about the game of rugby than Ian Mac, yet he remained an eternal student of the game.

Break a leg, Neil

Also in 2003, 24-year-old scrumhalf Neil Powell had joined The Sharks from the Cheetahs as a draft player, and performed with aplomb in his adopted team’s 32-19 victory over Quins at The Stoop.

Unfortunately, he also broke his leg in that match.

Powell, too, is back at The Stoop today, in his capacity as the Hollywoodbets Sharks’ Director of Rugby.

Townsend does the trick

The Sharks completed a hat-trick of wins at The Stoop in 2004, but it proved to be a much closer affair than on the previous two occasions.

In fact, it came down to a last-ditch penalty goal by Scottish import, Gregor Townsend, to steer the Durbanites to a heart-stopping 29-27 victory over Quins.

Townsend has been Scotland's Head Coach since 2017.

The Stoop, steeped in 60-year history

Located in south-west London, just across the road from Twickenham Stadium, and boasting a capacity of close to 15,000, The Stoop was built and officially opened in 1963.

Named after former England flyhalf (1905-12) and long-serving Quins player and president, Adrian Stoop, the ground was renamed the Twickenham Stoop in 2005.

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