Chiefs coach Ian Foster is expecting a typical "combative, physical" performance from the Sharks when the two teams go head-to-head in the opening round of the Super 14 competition in Durban on Saturday.

The Chiefs, who went down to the Bulls in last year's Final, start their 2010 campaign with a three-match road trip - the Sharks on Saturday, the Lions in Johannesburg and the Western Force in Perth, on consecutive weekends.

But it is Durban, and the Sharks, that poses the first big threat as the men from Waikato look to go a step further than their first appearance in a final last year.

Since their arrival in Durban at the weekend they have experienced extreme discomfort levels - temperatures in the high 20s (degrees Celsius) and humidity of at least 70 percent and higher.

However, the quality of the Sharks team, rather that Durban's notorious February head and humidity, will be the 2009 finalists' biggest challenge this week.

Foster, speaking to iafrica.com during a break from training on Tuesday, his team has come through the last couple of days pretty well.

"We've all settled and we are enjoying the heat and humidity of Durban," he said from the team's base on the South African East Coast.

"It is very warm and humid, but we knew what we were coming to. It is good to be here and we are pretty excited about round one."

He said that while they have taken some steps to prepare for the extreme conditions on Saturday, he does expect his charges to be up for the challenge.

"Round One of the Super 14 is always warm, no matter where you are playing - even in New Zealand you will get pretty warm temperatures," he told rugby365.com.

"We had a couple of training times and a couple of pre-season games early in the day, just to try and get used to the heat, but nothing beats just being here and getting used to it while we're being over here."

Foster, now in his seventh year as Chiefs mentor, felt that the Sharks will bank on the fact that they have an established style of play that has been "pretty effective" for them as the men from Durban attempt to add to their six previous play-off appearances.

"They have a lot of experience," Foster said, adding: "They have some clear and obvious strengths, particularly in their pack."

He admitted that it is one thing to know what the opposition are going to do, it is another thing to deal with it.

"I'm anticipating a pretty combative, physical battle up front.

"We also know they have the ability, when they want to, to move the ball wide pretty quickly. From that point can't afford to go and defend too much when you play them."

The Chiefs, who in the past have struggled on tour in South Africa, last year managed to win twice in the Republic for the first time.

However, Foster knows that it will be a tall order to repeat that feat.

"We took a lot of confidence [out of the victories over the Cheetahs and Stormers], as it was an important tour for us in terms of the competition and we got the results we needed," Foster said.

"However, this year is a new year and regards to lessons you learn in the past, the key thing is how hard it is to win away from home - especially over here [in SA].

"So we are fully committed and will put everything on the line, even though it is the early stages of the competition."

With no injuries and only captain Mils Muliaina missing - he is on a sabbatical and will miss the first month of the competition - Foster is happy with his team's pre-season build-up.

He admitted they might try a few new things, but said they will not stray too far from what has worked for them in the past - a high-paced game with plenty of counter-attacking from deep.

"There's a few things that we worked on in the pre-season, but like every team we have our own style that we are comfortable with and we try to develop variations to go with it.

"However, overall it is the team that settles into their own game the quickest that will do well.

"Generally it is hot and sticky and I'm not sure you will see too much 'razzle dazzle' under those conditions, so it is going to come down to commitment and nailing the basics."