Durban - Sharks coach John Plumtree believes they have made immense strides in recent years and is hoping they can now kick on with further progress in this season's Super Rugby playoffs.
The coastal side face defending champions, the Reds, in Brisbane on Saturday with a win set to take them one step further than their last campaign which ended at the same playoff stage.
They narrowly missed out on the title in 2007 when they were beaten by the Bulls, before reaching the last four the next season, while domestically they reached three of the last four Currie Cup finals winning two along the way.
"We've made the top six and the plus for me is we've also developed some really nice juniors," Plumtree said.
"You look at Paul Jordaan, Piet-Steph (du Toit), Marcell (Coetzee), the way he's come through this year.
"So I think we're in better shape than we've been in the past and we're still managing to chase finals.
"I mean three Currie Cup finals in four years and the playoffs again, which is really good news. The stuff up, I guess, is we have to travel, but that's what we have to do."