Bismarck aims to halt pillaging Highlanders

Sharks captain and hooker Bismarck du Plessis was absent on April 25 when the Highlanders ransacked the Shark tank, handing the hosts their first home defeat of the season.

During the comprehensive 34-18 defeat, Du Plessis watched helplessly as the men from Otago breached the Sharks' poor defence and errant kicking game, handing the team their only four-try bonus point loss in the regular season.

Maybe it could have been the game that influenced Sharks director of rugby Jake White not to fiddle with his first choice piano-shifters until the Cheetahs clash two weeks ago.

Du Plessis said they had learnt harsh lessons from that chastening loss that laid bare their limitations. They were toothless in attack, bullied at the collisions and stray kicks were punished by Ben Smith & Co.

"We need to be very hard at the breakdown and we can't be giving them easy penalties. We will have to play from the right areas," Du Plessis said.

"Their forwards were very physical and they dominated us in the tight loose.

"We have to be up for the challenge and we basically have to put down our mark of authority.

"As long as we can win, even if it's by one point, I'll be happy," he said.

Besides two contrasting styles of play, where an exciting but equally errant Highlanders unit will meet a bland but highly pragmatic Sharks, the former lack play-off experience, while the latter have plenty of cup final nous to call on.

Of the six play-off contenders the Highlanders are the least experienced, with their last finals series appearance being the 34-23 loss to the Crusaders in 2002, when the competition was still the Super 12.

The Sharks' run to the 2012 final, where they beat the Reds and Stormers on the road before falling short to the Chiefs in Hamilton, was launched from sixth place, where the Highlanders have finished.

Du Plessis is not concerned by what the secretive Highlanders, who are based in Johannesburg, are getting up to in terms of their preparation.

"I don't know what's going on in their camp but we are really working hard, which is something we have been doing from week one up until now," Du Plessis said.

"It's not about looking at what they do, it's about looking at what we do and what we can achieve."

Should the Sharks win, they face the possibility of a trip to Christchurch, which means players like Anton Bresler and Charl McLeod will be playing their last games at King's Park unless the Waratahs and Crusaders slip up in their semifinals.

McLeod said there will not be a teary eyed or emotionally tinged performance from them. It will be about what the team wants and needs, he said.

"Here there is no emotion about what one needs to do personally. It is about what the team needs to do on Saturday.

"We have three games in which we can win the competition. We have taken all the emotion out of it. It is all about the team and doing something we have not achieved before," McLeod said.