JP becomes permanent head coach as Sharks change management

JP Pietersen has been confirmed as the Hollywoodbets Sharks’ permanent head coach with Rory Duncan taking over the daily running of high performance rugby matters as Chief of Staff as the Durban club announced their new management structure on Wednesday.

Former Springbok wing and Sharks stalwart Pietersen has presided over a successful period so far as interim head coach, a position he took up when John Plumtree decided last November to move aside so that Pietersen could get a chance to establish himself as a candidate for the permanent role.

That move worked out swimmingly for Pietersen as the Sharks, who could have taken until the end of the season to make completely sure they were picking the right man after several poor appointments that led to the coaching office being a bit of a revolving door since 2013, decided he’d done enough in two months to prove he was the right man to take the team forward.

Warrior Nation, JP Pietersen leads the way into an exciting new chapter! 🤩

From game-changing moments on the pitch to calling the action in the coach's booth, he’s always been black-and-white 🦈

We’re with you every step, Coach! 💪 pic.twitter.com/y29SLplOgy — The Sharks (@SharksRugby) February 18, 2026

Duncan comes into a position that looks to have been created to align the different departments better than has been the case in the past, and he brings a lot of experience across both the coaching and executive levels of rugby management as he has served as head coach at the Toyota Cheetahs as well as their CEO.

According to a Sharks press release, in his new role Duncan will focus on “strategic coordination, governance alignment and execution across all aspects of the business”.

Such a position is much needed at a union where for too long head coaches and the head of recruitment were out of synch with each other when it came to recruitment strategy, while for a long time there was grey area over who did what following the appointment by former Sharks CEO Ed Coetzee of Neil Powell, the former Springbok Sevens coach, as director of rugby.

Powell now becomes the Head of Junior Rugby, which is quite different from his previous role, while there was no mention in the Sharks’ media dispatches on Wednesday of the head of recruitment Michael Horak, who has presumably been axed.

NEW ATTACK COACH

There was a lot of speculation that the Sharks’ attack coach Dave Williams would be axed but instead he finds himself in a new role as General Manager, a new role that has been created with accountability for the strategic direction and operational oversight of all “High Performance function” servicing senior and junior rugby, ensuring alignment across recruitment and player pathway structures to support the long-term competitiveness of the Sharks.

Scott Mathie, who has a pathway that includes being a successful schools coach at DHL as well as coaching Griquas and then being Sean Everitt’s senior assistant at Edinburgh, will come in as the new Sharks attack coach.

Their attacking game is an area that the Sharks require a lot of work on despite the two back-to-back successes against the DHL Stormers at the end of January that appear to have breathed new confidence and hope into the Sharks franchise.

Sharks CEO Shaun Bryans described Pietersen’s appointment as the permanent chief honcho at coaching level as a decision his organisation is extremely confident in.

“He has proven that he is the right man for the job, building on the strong foundations laid down by his predecessor,” said Bryans.

“This is the start of a new and exciting era of Sharks rugby, founded on mutual respect, passion and pride in what this jersey has meant over the years, and what it will continue to stand for. JP has brought a renewed focus on clarity, accountability and strong aligment with the rugby playing group. Performance matters and the improvement we have seen over the past two months is measurable and tangible.”

"Believe!" 🥹

The Hollywoodbets Sharks' new permanent coach JP Pietersen's word of encouragement to all the dreamers out there ✨

From Stellenbosch to Durban - and everything in between - his journey has been one of self-belief, courage and determination 💪 pic.twitter.com/gydT7BgrEr — The Sharks (@SharksRugby) February 18, 2026

Pietersen’s first assignment as permanent head coach will be Saturday’s 11th round Vodacom URC derby against the Lions in Johannesburg, a fixture where they were well beaten last year.

Then, as now, they went into the game off a good win over a rated fellow South African opponent, with 12 months ago it being a win over the Bulls at Loftus.

The Sharks play the Bulls at Loftus the week after they play the Lions.

There is no mention of Pietersen's predecessor, Plumtree, fitting into the system as announced on Wednesday but it is understood that is something that is still being worked on.

The management structure changes follow an extensive and comprehensive review of the Sharks structures that started not long after the meeting that confirmed that Plumtree would be vacating his role as head coach at the end of the season at the end of October last year.