Springbok and Sharks midfield monster Andre Esterhuizen says the travel demands on English clubs in European competitions are far less arduous than those faced by SA teams.
Esterhuizen earned 87 caps for London-based Harlequins from 2020 to 2024 before returning to Durban where he had begun his senior provincial career, later making his Springbok debut in 2018.
The Sharks are coming off the back of a 56-17 hammering at Leicester in the Champions Cup, with coach John Plumtree having selected an understrength team for the match with Saturday’s home Vodacom United Rugby Championship clash against the Vodacom Bulls in mind.
When explaining his selections afterwards, Plumtree pointed out that his players, “are not robots … and right now, the South African boys are treated like robots.”
On Wednesday, Esterhuizen admitted the travelling was “tough” and would continue to be until a solution was found.
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“The [international and club] schedules clash, with the Rugby Championship and the URC, and then there’s the Champions Cup, but we try to manage it as best we can,” said the 110kg inside centre.
“It’s easy for an English side to send a full-strength team to South Africa because they travel once a year. We [South African sides] travel up and down four or five times a season. I played for Quins and it wasn’t tough to play in two competitions [English Premiership and Champions Cup].
“At the moment, every player’s on a different schedule,” he added. “A player like Eben Etzebeth played 12 Tests this year and then came back into a season that’s just started and has another 23 games left if you count the finals.”
The Sharks trained on Wednesday for the first time this week and are “bracing for a tough challenge” against the Bulls, according to Esterhuizen.
“We know each other well. The weather this weekend will dictate what the game looks like but we know it’s always a physical, hard game against the Bulls.
“The fans have been showing up in numbers the last few games, which we really appreciate. The more we win at home, the more fans come, and the more enjoyable it is. We’re trying to create something special here.”
Photo: Roberto Bregani/Gallo Images
