A week is a long time in politics and in sport it is no different. The radical transformation of morale in the Sharks camp in the space of seven days is testimony to that after the depression of defeat in Bloemfontein was turned into euphoria in Cape Town.
This time last week Jannie du Plessis was lamenting a mortal blow to his soul but after a severe bout of introspection by the prop and his teammates, the Sharks have rediscovered their spark and plan to replicate their highly effective back-to-basics game plan when they host the Highlanders at Kings Park in Saturday's Super Rugby quarter-final clash.
As coach Jake White put it yesterday: "It's the confidence you get from winning, and everyone knows that winning is a habit, it leads to more success," he said.
White knows that losing just as easily becomes a habit and that is why the Sharks were so desperate for a turnaround in fortunes before the play-offs after the loss to the Cheetahs.
White said he would take the defeat in Bloemfontein and the victory over the Stormers as a package instead of having it the other way around.
