Sharks coach Rudolf Straeuli has warned his charges to "focus first and foremost on the ball" in the charged-up Super 12 match against the Cats in Bloemfontein on Friday night.

There is usually a lot of niggle between local teams, but the Sharks will want to concentrate on the game and keep their winning record intact before they leave for New Zealand on Saturday.

"The Cats pack will be the toughest we have faced," Straeuli told the Mercury on Tuesday. "They will be in our faces all night. We cannot afford to give an inch."

"We are on the same plane as the Cats on Saturday, so whatever happens on Friday night, the two sets of players are going to have to look each other in the eye the next day on a very long flight," said Straeuli.

The coach has named his entire touring squad for the match as they are dealing with a few injuries. He will first wait for confirmation of the injured players before he trims his team by four players later this week.

Prop Ollie le Roux has missed the last two games and should be ready to return in the place of Eduard Coetzee. He has recovered from a leg injury and may be the only change to the starting line-up.

Straeuli said: "We cannot afford to lose our focus at this point. We have decided not to tamper with a winning formula, thus there shall not be any major changes in the squad."

Sharks squad: Mark Andrews, Warren Britz, Warren Brosnihan, Deon Carstens, Eduard Coetzee, Craig Davidson, Gaffie du Toit, Etienne Fynn, Trevor Halstead, Butch James, Deon Kayser, Ricardo Loubscher, Ollie le Roux, Brad MacLeod-Henderson, Brent Moyle, John Smit, Philip Smit, Andre Snyman, Justin Swart, Stefan Terblanche, Gus Theron, Lukas van Biljon, Albert van der Berg, Charl van Rensburg, AJ Venter, Dave von Hoesslin.