Ken Borland

Bulls coach Jake White praised his team for producing almost the perfect game in their record Currie Cup final win over the Sharks on Saturday night: forwards and backs were in unison, the attack was clinical and the defence showed no weakness. And he believes their performance has given them huge confidence and cohesion as they head to Europe.

The Bulls battered the Sharks 44-10 at Loftus Versfeld, the biggest winning margin ever in a Currie Cup final, and the scoreline did not flatter them, so complete was their performance.

“Our captain, Marcell Coetzee, was saying that everything felt so composed and in synch, the backs and forwards just working slickly together. That was very close to the perfect game based on getting chances and making sure we take them, no soft moments in defence and we did not give away many penalties. That’s how you play rugby and it’s going to create massive confidence and cohesion going forward.

“When we play like we did tonight then I’m sure everyone at this incredibly proud union is very happy. To get that composure from what is a young side is very pleasing and it felt like we were in control the whole time. I’m also very happy that in the last two weeks there has been a definite progression in our game; that’s what you want to see – that at the back end of the competition you get better,” White said after the Bulls defended their title in emphatic fashion.

The value of aggressive defence was once again clearly shown as the Sharks dominated possession and territory in the first half, but foundered on the rock of the eager Bulls tackling. The Sharks trailed 19-3 at halftime and the result of the final was all but settled.

“That first set of defence, against attack after attack, and then after 12 phases we get the turnover and the penalty, kick it downfield and then score a try from first phase – it does not get better than that, taking your first chance in a final. Big moments are crucial in finals, but they don’t just happen on attack, but in defence too.

“The Sharks wanted to have a go at us, but we could counter that because we were able to defend and keep our shape, and not allow them to get around us. Altitude catches you and then when they were dead on their feet, we were able to pounce. But it was our defence that gave us the ability to counter-punch. I’m very proud for us to have won back-to-back Currie Cups now,” White said.

Springbok captain Siya Kolisi has no reason to massage the egos of the Argentina forwards so when he said on Friday that their pack was similar to the one he leads it was perhaps the ultimate compliment. And an indicator of how stiff a challenge the South African team face in their opening Rugby Championship match at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Saturday.

Argentina coach Mario Ledesma has said this week that taking on the Springbok pack is the toughest challenge his forwards will face, and Kolisi returned the compliment by saying the Pumas pack was similar. Pablo Matera and Facunda Isa are world-class loose forwards, locks Guido Petti and Marcos Kremer can mix it with the best and Julian Montoya and Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro provide plenty of fire in the front row.

“It’s a big challenge for us too against the Argentina forwards, they are a very strong pack who pride themselves on mauling and scrumming, and at the breakdown they all get involved. They are similar to us and that’s what makes it so difficult. So there is definitely mutual respect between the two packs. They are a completely different challenge to the Lions.

“So we have done no less preparation for them. We have to make sure we can get our own game going, if we get it right then it doesn’t matter who we are playing against. Obviously Argentina will want to prove a point. We know the challenge they’ll pose – a strong pack with their ball-carries and guys really getting into the breakdown,” Kolisi said on Friday.

Several new faces have been brought in to refresh the team after their huge exertions in the British and Irish Lions series and Kolisi said they have an important role to play in keeping the Springboks in the number one spot in the world rankings in what will be an incredibly tough Rugby Championship.

“The guys getting an opportunity to play and Joseph Dweba playing his first Test are very hungry and they really want to play, so they are going to bring energy. We want Joseph, who I know is very excited, Ox Nche and Wilco Louw to take charge in the scrum battle. And myself and Kwagga Smith have played together quite a bit and we work well together.

“The goal after winning the World Cup was to maintain our number one ranking and consistently stay there. We don’t want to be once-off winners. We want to win more games and trophies, that’s how we will keep being number one. The coaches give us simple messages to play simple rugby, they want us to focus on the stuff that does not require talent and I love it,’ Kolisi said.

The Sharks are going to have to draw on their deepest deposits of physicality and energy for the full 80 minutes if they hope to get the better of the British and Irish Lions, according to coach Sean Everitt, which is why he named a bench with six forwards on it for their clash at Ellis Park on Wednesday night.

JJ van der Mescht and Reniel Hugo are the two locks on the bench, but it is not just brute force that the Sharks will require but also the ability to play at a high tempo.

“It’s going to be a great challenge, we learnt a lot from their game against our Lions, who probably weren’t aware what an international team can bring. They play at a high intensity, they’re always trying to speed the game up, which is something we have been working on but we are not quite there yet. We are going to have to keep up for 80 minutes, which is why we went for a 6/2 split on the bench.

“From a physicality point of view the Lions are right up there and they can vary their game – go from contestable kicks to a running game – because they have high-quality players. There’s no room for error, they give you nothing, they have incredible line-speed on defence and they put a lot of pressure on at the breakdown. We are going to need a really good team effort,” Everitt said on Monday.

Ensuring there are enough reserves in the kitty to still play high-tempo rugby in the final quarter is a challenge all South African teams are going to have to adapt to against European opposition, according to Everitt.

“In Europe there’s a big emphasis on ball-in-play time and that’s the biggest challenge from a South African point of view. Ulster and Leinster played a game recently where the ball-in-play time was 52 minutes, while in the last Currie Cup we were averaging 26-30 minutes. It’s why Rassie Erasmus stepped in with a plan to increase that. The Lions game at the weekend had 39 minutes ball-in-play.

“It’s certainly something the Sharks have been working on, we want to play at a higher intensity because it’s what we’ll need later in the year. So this game against the Lions will be a good test of how far we still have to go. We know the Lions go hard at the ball, they’re physical in the tackle and try to hold you up, so we’ve got to get to the ball quickly,” Everitt said.

But despite the daunting task ahead of them and the fact that they are playing away from their Kings Park haven, Everitt said the Sharks are as excited as puppies about taking on the Lions.

“We spoke about the opportunity to make history and if we win we will forever be in the history books as the first Sharks or Natal team to beat the British and Irish Lions. The guys are excited and have watched a lot of Northern Hemisphere rugby so they know the players and there are no false pretences of the challenge in front of us, but if we can stop their momentum and power game then we are in with a chance.

“Unfortunately we can’t play in Durban, but we’ve been in Johannesburg since Friday so our acclimatisation will be spot-on and we’ve generally done pretty well up here, we feel comfortable playing on the Highveld. Personally I remember watching the 1974 Lions playing against Border, so I have a lot of respect for the team and I’m just so glad that the game is going ahead,” Everitt said.

Sharks: Manie Libbok, Werner Kok, Jeremy Ward, Marius Louw, Thaakir Abrahams, Curwin Bosch, Jaden Hendrikse, Phepsi Buthelezi (c), Thembelani Bholi, James Venter, Hyron Andrews, Ruben van Heerden, Khutha Mchunu, Fez Mbatha, Khwezi Mona. Bench – Kerron van Vuuren, Ntuthuko Mchunu, Wiehahn Herbst, JJ van der Mescht, Reniel Hugo, Dylan Richardson, Grant Williams, Anthony Volmink.

Losing 50% of their outstanding World Cup second row quartet would be sheer bad luck for the Springboks, especially with the British and Irish Lions having such brilliant lineout forwards as Alun-Wyn Jones, Maro Itoje and Courtney Lawes in their ranks, but forwards coach Deon Davids is hopeful that RG Snyman and Lood de Jager will still be able to feature against the tourists.

While Franco Mostert and Eben Etzebeth are fit and a great combination, Snyman, apart from the bad burns he suffered in the Munster fire-pit incident, had the misfortune to suffer another knee injury last month just when his rehab from a rupture of his ACL ligament was nearing completion, while De Jager suffered a particularly nasty injury when he broke his tibia in December, also damaging his ankle and knee in the process.

“It’s an ongoing process with RG and Lood, they are busy with rehab, and hopefully they can join us in the next couple of weeks to come. All the overseas players will be here on Sunday and they will have a thorough assessment so we can see where they are exactly medically. We will know then if they will take part.

“Obviously the lineouts are going to be key against the Lions, but it doesn’t only end with the locks, the combination of the loose forwards needs to be added in there too. Wyn-Jones and Itoje are world-class, but Lawes is also a very good lineout athlete. It’s going to be an interesting battle because if we have all our locks available, they have proven their worth at the World Cup,” Davids said from Bloemfontein on Wednesday.

The Springbok forwards coach also confirmed that they were keen on having Duane Vermeulen, currently recovering from ankle surgery, in the camp even if just in an off-field capacity.

That Vermeulen is an inspirational presence can be seen by the Bulls pretty much turning into cows in his absence, and the man of the match in the 2019 World Cup final is certainly a talisman for the Springboks as well.