Sharks prop, Ox Nche says he can’t wait for the challenge of facing French superstar Antoine Du Pont and Toulouse when the Durban side encounter the six-time Champions Cup winners at home in round three of the tournament on Saturday.

Nche, widely regarded as the best loosehead prop in world rugby says he wants to pit himself against the very best, and he says Toulouse will offer what he is looking for.

The Sharks versus Toulouse game in the Champions Cup is expected to be the club version of what South Africa against France is at international level. The Sharks followed up a positive win at home against the Exeter Chiefs with a big loss away from home against the Leicester Tigers in the Champions Cup.

Their next match is against Toulouse, the defending champions, and while it may be in Durban, Nche says the French Champions are expected to bring a full-strength side.

“Toulouse are the current champions in the champions cup and they are absolutely on form currently they’ve won two out of two with five points home and away so they have shown their class, they have shown their quality and they are bringing a full strength team to South Africa so I think it is going to be exciting I enjoy testing myself against the best and the best in the world and for me it is something I am looking forward to,”

The Sharks, the Challenge Cup champs, were impressive at home in the Champions Cup, but less so away from home, and so at Kings Park they’ll need to put their stamp on the match early, or risk being bossed about in their own backyard.

“They play with a bit of French flair, they are unexpected they have got a good set piece, and they just want to dominate you physically and for us we will have to bring some of our expertise and how we played against France and what to expect,” Nche added.

After Toulouse, the Sharks will travel to France to face Bordeaux. They have two matches to determine their fate in the Champions Cup.

“We approach it game by game but we know the challenge that lies ahead I think currently Toulouse are number one in the top 14 and Bordeaux are number 2 or the other way around so they are top 2 quality sides that we have to be mentally ready for and we approach it game by game you can’t think two far ahead you can’t think of Bordeaux yet because you still have a big challenge Toulouse have a great team,” Nche explains.

The Sharks have assembled a superstar lineup which few teams can rival in the player stakes. It just so happens that the one team that can certainly give them a go is headed to Durban for this week’s Champions Cup showdown.