More to come from ‘humble’ Masuku

John Plumtree says Siya Masuku isn’t near the peak of his abilities after the flyhalf steered the Sharks into the Challenge Cup final on Saturday. DYLAN JACK reports.

Masuku scored 22 points off the kicking tee, including the matchwinning touchline conversion, as the Sharks came from 13 points down to beat Clermont in the Challenge Cup semi-final at Twickenham Stoop.

A big-name signing from the Cheetahs in the off-season last year, Masuku had to wait until February to make his Sharks debut.

The 27-year-old, who was playing amateur rugby for the Rustenburg Impala in 2019, has more than repaid the faith in him, scoring 62 points in his last four starts at No 10 in all competitions.

“Siya’s a lovely story, isn’t he? He’s played well on the big stage now,” Plumtree said. “I’m just really happy for him. He’s a very humble character. He feels very honoured to be playing in this jersey and he’s making the most of his opportunities.

“He’s still going to get better. His skill set can improve, his passing can improve, he can improve as an athlete. He hasn’t reached anywhere near his ceiling yet. He’s a confident little player.

“His kicking is great, when he goes for touch, he doesn’t just try for 30 metres, he looks for 40 metres. I love his attitude around the game and the players like him. He is riding the crest of the wave at the moment.”

Having found themselves 28-18 down at half time and 31-18 behind early in the second half, the Sharks showed their mettle by scoring two tries in the final 20 minutes to snatch the lead, before producing a defensive rearguard to see out the victory.

“They showed a lot of character,” Plumtree said. “What we spoke about at half-time, we were only 10 points down. I know it was 28-18, but I told the boys it’s only 10-0. There were some good messages from the leaders.

“I felt that if we got our game going, seeing more of the ball, we would genuinely put them under pressure, with just a bit of luck, we could clinch the game.

“It was a case of us never giving up. This is where I want to go with this team. We might lose a game, but it’s never ok to give up. We showed that today.”

The Sharks will return to Durban for back-to-back home games against Benetton and Cardiff, before travelling to London for the Challenge Cup final.

Photo: Patrick Khachfe/Getty Images