Sharks coach Mongalo takes blame after Pumas Currie Cup upset: 'It's 100% on me'

Sharks head coach Joey Mongalo is blaming himself for his side's Currie Cup semi-final loss to the Pumas in Durban on Saturday night, saying the result was "all my fault".

The Sharks were stunned by the defending champion Pumas in front of a sizeable Kings Park crowd, going down 26-20 to be knocked out of the tournament.

The Pumas, meanwhile, will not contest their second Currie Cup final in a row.

READ | Sharks rocked in Durban as heroic Pumas book Currie Cup final slot

Addressing media after the match, Mongalo blamed himself for "tinkering" with the Sharks side that travelled to Cape Town and was smashed 44-5 by Western Province in the final round of group stage fixtures a week ago.

The Sharks had already secured a home semi-final before that fixture, which prompted Mongalo to rest some of his key players despite the Sharks having been on a run of seven straight victories at the time.

That, Mongalo acknowledged, was a mistake.

"It's all my fault, and I mean that," said Mongalo.

"I'm the one who decided to tinker with the squad that went to Western Province, and I didn't have to do that. I could have chosen the same team that would have gained momentum going into the semi-final.

"I took a risk, and that risk didn't work. You saw how long it took to get going in the game, and that's purely because the guys were disrupted the week before because I chose to play a completely different team against WP.

"It's not on the guys; it's 100% on me."

This was Mongalo's first full-time head coach appointment at a major union, and while he was visibly devastated at the result, he said he had taken away valuable learnings from the season.

"I'm proud of how the team was able to galvanise around a purpose and how the guys played and offered