Everitt praises all-round Scot Dylan Richardson ahead of key Leinster clash

Sharks coach Sean Everitt said loose-forward Dylan Richardson has shown why he is a capped Scottish international player.

Richardson, a Kearsney College product, will be starting at flank for the Sharks when they face Leinster in Dublin in their United Rugby Championship clash on Saturday.

Richardson played some of his formative rugby at hooker, but Everitt said Richardson has taken on his loose-forward responsibilities to a point where he shows that he belongs there. 

READ | Notshe starts for Sharks against Leinster, ex-Maties star in line for URC debut

"His robustness is the reason we're playing him on the blindside because he's physical and he puts in a lot of carries," Everitt said.

"Dylan has always been an all-round loose-forward. He may have lacked a bit in height, but his scavenging and his excellence on the ground add to his team selection.

"There was talk of Dylan moving to hooker, but he's comfortable on the flank and he covers all the areas that we need him to.

Everitt has been happy to use Richardson, James Venter, Sikhumbuzo Notshe, and Phendulani Buthelezi as his main loose forwards in the past two games.

For the Leinster game, he's rotated Notshe with Buthelezi at number eight, but kept his two fetchers in operation.

Everitt said they've got a massive task at hand on Saturday, but one Richardson and Venter should get through as expected of them.

READ | Worsening English club crisis, Boks impacted: 'Things can change, not for the better, very quickly'

"Dylan and James get through a mountain of work and their tackle count is very high," Everitt said.

"They're able to put pressure on the opposition's breakdown. So, it stands in good stead for us that we're going in with two fetchers.

"Dylan was man-of-the-match last week