Ken Borland

Loosehead prop Simphiwe Matanzima has always been considered a top-class prospect by the Bulls, ever since their scouts lured him from Queens College in the Eastern Cape to Pretoria, but a devastating double injury blow has prevented him from making a mark in the new Jake White era.

Now 23 years old, Matanzima made his Bulls senior debut in a Super Rugby derby against the Stormers in 2019. But in the opening round of the 2020 southern hemisphere competition he suffered a dislocated shoulder and then, when he made his return to training, he tore his achilles tendon last July.

So it has been a long way back for Matanzima and he finally got back on the field for the Bulls in their Currie Cup match against Western Province last weekend, putting in a lively display.

“I was out for 15 months and I’m just glad I’m done with rehab. I played one club game for Naka Bulle and I’m pleased that my first game back for the Bulls is now out the way. I was a bit rusty although I’ve been scrumming for the last couple of months, but I felt like myself and now I’m just looking forward to the rest of the season.

“Coming back was more of a mental challenge than physical because there’s a lot you can’t do and you’re alone a lot of the time. And it was a very serious injury so you worry that things might go wrong. You’ve just got to allow yourself to work through those emotions.

“It’s just a different level playing for the Bulls and it was against a good Western Province pack. With one squad in Italy and us only training together for a week, it was always going to be tough for us but we fought well. Jake White and Russell Winter have had a massive impact and it’s great learning from them. It’s never nice watching from the outside and it’s awesome to be back in the team now,” Matanzima said on Wednesday.

Since he suffered those injuries, the Bulls have signed Jacques van Rooyen, an old bull who has done really well on both sides of the scrum, and Gerhard Steenekamp has also made a big impact. Plus there is Lizo Gqoboka, snapping on the heels of the Springbok looseheads and clearly a force to be reckoned with.

“The more competition the better, that’s how you build squad depth, it’s healthy. It’s nice to challenge yourself and to scrum against strong packs, I relish the opportunity and the Pumas on Friday night will have a good pack. They are a strong side, they always play a physical game, they bring it, and they love to maul. So we know what to expect.

“But we also know what we can do if we play as a team. It’s going to be a tough battle,” Matanzima said.

Springbok loosehead prop Trevor Nyakane will get the chance to prove he can also be a top-class tighthead when he starts in the number three jersey for the Vodacom Bulls in their SuperRugby match against the Hurricanes at Loftus Versfeld on Friday night.

With Marcel van der Merwe already out with a hamstring strain and Werner Kruger suffering a serious ankle injury last weekend in the rout up front against the Stormers, the Bulls are facing something of a crisis in the tighthead position, but coach Frans Ludeke believes Nyakane can do a job there, even though he will be up against a seasoned All Black in Ben Franks.

“Trevor has really improved at tighthead, he has played Tests there, and we ended strongly in the scrums against the Stormers with him there. This selection reflects that and we are still positive and excited about what we can do in the scrums,” Ludeke said at the team announcement on Tuesday.

Morne Mellet will start at loosehead prop, while Dean Greyling is back on the bench after recovering from a foot injury. The reserve tighthead is Dayan van der Westhuizen, an SA U20 prop, but there seems to be a reluctance to use him as he was left on the bench for the whole of the Stormers game despite the obvious problems the Bulls were having in the scrums.

Ludeke confirmed that the Bulls were looking to acquire an experienced tighthead as back-up, which is probably wise given the obvious lack of faith in Van der Westhuizen.

The one unenforced change to the team comes at fullback where Jesse Kriel replaces Jurgen Visser. Ludeke said Kriel would be a better choice against the Hurricanes because “we think the ball will be in play a lot”, but confidentiality and a wish to protect Visser probably prevented the coach from saying the change was made because of the simple kick ahead that Visser dropped in the first half, leading to the Stormers’ first try and a dramatic change in the momentum of the game.

A third change to the side is enforced by the pectoral muscle injury to eighthman Arno Botha. He will be replaced by captain Pierre Spies, with both the player and management in agreement that he is ready for a full return to action after doing well off the bench against the Stormers.

“The way Pierre carried the ball, it was like the old Pierre Spies. He had a huge impact and we are very satisfied that he’s back to full fitness,” Ludeke said.

Spies’s place on the bench will be taken by young Hanro Liebenberg, who everyone agrees is destined for greater things.

Bulls team: 15-Jesse Kriel, 14-Bjorn Basson, 13-JJ Engelbrecht, 12-Jan Serfontein, 11-Francois Hougaard, 10-Handre Pollard, 9-Piet van Zyl, 8-Pierre Spies, 7-Lappies Labuschagne, 6-Deon Stegmann, 5-Victor Matfield, 4-Jacques du Plessis, 3-Trevor Nyakane, 2-Adriaan Strauss, 1-Morne Mellet. Reserves – 16-Callie Visagie, 17-Dean Greyling, 18-Grant Hattingh, 19-Hanro Liebenberg, 20-Rudy Paige, 21-Jacques-Louis Potgieter, 22-Jurgen Visser, 23-Dayan van der Westhuizen.

Springbok loosehead prop Tendai “Beast” Mtawarira on Sunday attributed South Africa’s dominant scrummaging display against England to systematic work during the week with new scrum coach and former France star Pieter de Villiers.

The Springbok scrum dismantled England at the set-piece, helping to set up a 22-17 victory in Durban in the first test. England conceded two penalties and three free kicks at the scrum as South Africa’s starting front row of Mtawarira, hooker Bismarck du Plessis and tighthead Jannie du Plessis dominated from the outset, before replacement prop Coenie Oosthuizen and hooker Adriaan Strauss carried on the good work in the final quarter.

“We worked very hard on our scrum and had some good sessions during the week with Pieter de Villiers and it was a good start. He was a great scrummager in his time and he is a great well of knowledge, the best guy to learn from,” Mtawarira told reporters in Johannesburg on Sunday.

“Everyone was able to do as expected of him and we had a couple of new faces [debutant Oosthuizen and the recalled Strauss] that gelled together well. We can definitely take a lot of confidence out of our scrumming in the first test.”

De Villiers, who is South African-born but played 69 tests in the French front row, has been putting the Springboks through a gut-wrenching core-strengthening regimen that has seen them spending a lot of time crawling on the ground, but these exercises have provided tremendous muscle and also helped the home side dominant the crucial collisions in the second half against England.

“We needed to get used to each other in the first half, but in the second half we got into our game, we got on the front foot,” Mtawarira, who was at the forefront of the battle in the tight-loose, said.

While England’s recalcitrance at the scrum cost them points, it also proved a morale-booster for the Springbok backline.

“You can get a lot of penalties at the scrum now with the new rules and it needs to be a major focus. But it also gives a front-foot platform to launch attacks from and set up better field-position,” replacement back Pat Lambie said.

Lambie came on for the second half and helped the Springboks to two second-half tries, having replaced fullback Zane Kirchner, who suffered a knee injury.

Springbok media manager De Jongh Borchardt said Kirchner’s fitness was the one serious injury concern, while Jannie du Plessis, wing Bryan Habana, centre Jean de Villiers and scrumhalf Francois Hougaard all suffered facial lacerations in a no-holds-barred contest.

Lambie said the Springboks, under new coach Heyneke Meyer and a new captain in De Villiers, were very nervous ahead of the test.

“We were relieved to win because there were a lot of nerves yesterday. It’s just really nice to get the first one behind us, everyone’s chuffed to get the win out of the way. Everyone’s a bit more relaxed now. Last week, being our first week together, there was a lot to take in, but this week it will be nice to be able to focus on the things we need to work on,” Lambie said.