Ken Borland

Vodacom Bulls captain Pierre Spies disclosed this week that there were “hard words” spoken amongst the team after their lacklustre opening loss to the Stormers, but they are definitely going to have to do their talking on the field tonight if they are to beat a star-studded Hurricanes side in their SuperRugby match at Loftus Versfeld.

The details of the defeat to the Stormers will show that the Bulls were dominated at scrum time, failed to trouble the opposition lineout, missed 18 tackles and conceded eight linebreaks as they lost the gain-line battle, but the single biggest factor in the loss was attitude.

“We’ve had hard words for each other this week, we know that we’re a much better team than that. We made way too many mistakes, which means you can’t build pressure. Against the Hurricanes we have to execute what we do well, we have to take care of the ball and be clinical,” Spies said.

The Hurricanes will field a lethal backline featuring TJ Perenara, Beauden Barrett, Julian Savea, the returning Ma’a Nonu, Conrad Smith and Cory Jane, hence the Bulls stressing the importance of not allowing them turnover ball.

“Broken field is what they want, turnover ball, and like all New Zealand teams if they get front-foot ball and get their offloads going, then they are lethal,” Bulls coach Frans Ludeke said. “But they also have a strong defence, they’ve definitely improved there, their work-rate is good, they get numbers up in defence, and they’re very competitive at the collisions.”

Judging by the performance against the Stormers, Ludeke’s new game plan seems to be going down with his team like oil with water, but the coach said he can live with the mistakes as long as the decision-making of his players is correct.

“You win games from broken field these days because if you just carry the ball all the time you will eventually lose it. It comes down to decision-making, it’s about space and numbers and not trying to create something that’s not there. Passes not going to hand can happen and sometimes the contact skills of the players let them down, but as long as the attacking mindset is there,” Ludeke said.

The Hurricanes, who beat the Lions last weekend at Ellis Park, don’t have a great record on tour here and the last time they won two games in South Africa was way back in 2006. But they certainly made a statement against the Lions and if the Bulls also make numerous mistakes, then the Wellington-based side has more than enough firepower to punish them.

The Bulls need to up their intensity up front so they don’t look like carthorses again against a mobile Hurricanes pack, while the scrum needs a drastic improvement in the absence of tighthead Marcel van der Merwe with a knee injury.

The Bulls have plenty of talent, but one can’t expect the younger players to do everything; the Bulls’ senior players really need to step up tonight.

Teams

Bulls: 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.

Hurricanes: 15-Jason Woodward, 14-Cory Jane, 13-Conrad Smith, 12-Ma’a Nonu, 11-Julian Savea, 10-Beauden Barrett, 9-TJ Perenara, 8-Blade Thomson, 7-Callum Gibbins, 6-Brad Shields, 5-James Broadhurst, 4-Mark Abbott, 3-Ben Franks, 2-Dane Coles, 1-Reggie Goodes. Reserves – 16-Brayden Mitchell, 17-Jeffery Toomaga-Allen, 18-Chris Eves, 19-Ardie Savea, 20-Victor Vito, 21-Chris Smylie, 22-James Marshall, 23-Matt Proctor.

There are four changes to the Cell C Sharks’ starting line-up for their Vodacom SuperRugby match against the Emirates Lions in Durban on Saturday, but director of rugby Gary Gold said he is trying to maintain as much consistency as possible despite their poor start to the season.

The Sharks went down to the Cheetahs in a shock result at King’s Park last weekend, and three of the four changes are injury-enforced.

The odd one out is captain Bismarck du Plessis’ return at hooker, which is a no-brainer after he withdrew shortly before the Cheetahs game with a shoulder problem.

Lubabalo “Giant” Mtyanda will make his SuperRugby debut as he comes in at lock for Mouritz Botha, the English international having fractured a cheekbone last weekend.

He won’t have “Beast” Mtawarira in front of him, however, as the loosehead prop suffered a torn calf against the Cheetahs and has been replaced by Dale Chadwick.

Wing S’bura Sithole twisted his ankle to rule him out of action, with veteran Odwa Ndungane coming in on the right wing.

“It was a very disappointing performance against the Cheetahs but we’re not going to hit the panic button. Making four enforced changes already means nearly 30% of your team has changed and I want to try and keep some consistency in selection,” Gold told The Citizen. “We’re backing the players to get it right this weekend and they’ve trained well.”

Gold also said the time was not quite right to rush loose forward Jean Deysel back into the starting line-up, despite his strong showing off the bench in the opening game.

“He’s very close, but getting back from Japan not that long ago, we just want to give him a slow entry back into SuperRugby and not throw him into the deep end. Another 30-35 minutes off the bench this weekend will be good for him,” Gold said.

The other places on the bench opened up by the injuries go to loosehead prop Thomas du Toit and powerful young centre Andre Esterhuizen.

Mtyanda, who moved to Durban from the Pumas last year, has leapfrogged the experienced Marco Wentzel, who is seen more as a number five lock and will continue to provide cover on the bench. Pieter-Steph du Toit is able to play in either second-row position.

Gold said Ryan Kankowski is back from Japan and in training with the Sharks, while Frans Steyn and JP Pietersen are going to be playing in a semi-final this weekend, with Sharks fans obviously hoping they lose so they can return as soon as possible to SuperRugby action.

Team: 15-SP Marais, 14-Odwa Ndungane, 13-Waylon Murray, 12-Heimar Williams, 11-Lwazi Mvovo, 10-Pat Lambie, 9-Cobus Reinach, 8-Tera Mtembu, 7-Renaldo Bothma, 6-Marcell Coetzee, 5-Pieter-Steph du Toit, 4-Lubabalo Mtyanda, 3-Jannie du Plessis, 2-Bismarck du Plessis (capt), 1-Dale Chadwick. Replacements – 16-Kyle Cooper, 17-Thomas du Toit, 18-Matt Stevens, 19-Marco Wentzel, 20-Jean Deysel, 21-Conrad Hoffmann, 22-Fred Zeilinga, 23-Andre Esterhuizen.

Jean Deysel’s wife Cindy must feel like a bit of a rugby widow because no sooner has the powerhouse loose forward wrapped up a season with Japanese club Toyota Verblitz than he signed a fresh contract to join the Cell C Sharks for SuperRugby.

Deysel of course made his name for the Sharks with his strong ball-carrying abilities and sheer physicality, earning four Springbok caps between 2009 and 2011, but the Natalians’ new coach, Gary Gold, secured his signature afresh once his availability became known.

“I’m very happy to be back; when Gary spoke to me about three weeks ago it was an easy decision to make. It’s always good coming back to Durban, to see the players again and it’s a great union to play for. So it was an easy decision once Gary offered me the opportunity,” Deysel said this week at King’s Park.

“When I initially signed the contract with Toyota Verblitz, I didn’t think I’d be coming back, it was a late decision for me. It wasn’t on the cards not that long ago, so it feels great to be here now.”

While Deysel’s participation in last weekend’s SuperRugby opener against the Cheetahs was limited to a second-half appearance off the bench, his body certainly felt the difference between the less-physical Japanese leagues and the toughest competition in world rugby.

“I played just 30 minutes on Saturday, and I battled to get out of the car on Sunday, whereas when I played in Japan, Sundays were good. SuperRugby is a lot more physical, you do miss that and the heavy competitiveness of it. And it actually feels good to get up on a Sunday and really feel like it was a tough game the day before,” one of the Sharks’ ultimate hard men said.

Deysel said Gold’s new ball-in-hand approach for the Sharks suits his style of play as he just loves carrying the “pill” as often as he can.

“Gary has been great; the way he speaks and thinks about the game is phenomenal. He puts so much preparation into the game you almost feel like you have to do your part just to catch up. He has been very influential not just for me, but for the whole team.”

“The way Gary structures the game, it’s about sharing the ball-carrying load, but for me, being involved on Saturday, it was just good to be back and I just wanted to have the ball in my hands. But you still have to stay in the structures that have been set out, but it’s about sharing the work-load,” Deysel said.

Even though Deysel is no rookie, having earned 67 SuperRugby caps previously for the Sharks as well as playing 92 Currie Cup matches for the Lions and the Natalians, his return to action in the southern hemisphere was quite a moment for the 29-year-old.

“I can’t remember when I’ve been that nervous before a game. Maybe eight years ago when I played my first match, but I think I was even more nervous this time around. I must take my hat off to the guys and the coaching staff, they made it so much easier to fit in and get into the game-plan. Everyone had a massive impact during the week, so it was much easier for me to fit back in because everyone helped so much,” Deysel said.

And after their upset loss to the Cheetahs, there is no way the Sharks are going to underestimate the Lions this weekend.

“The Lions have a very good loose-trio and they’ve been playing together for a while now. They link together well and do the job that the coaches want them to do. So we will need to match them, not just physically but skills-wise as well. We’ll prepare well and hopefully get one over them this Saturday,” Deysel said.

And what did the man who grew up in the Free State gold mining town of Virginia miss the most while he was in Japan?

“There were no braais! I missed that the most to be honest. Being in Japan was a great experience and a real learning curve. Toyota is a great club and they are so eager to learn and develop their rugby, not just in general but as a culture. For me to go there and see that was awesome, but this is home and it’s where all my friends and family are. There were a lot of things I missed and it’s really good to be back,” Deysel said.

http://citizen.co.za/329218/im-happy-back-gary-gold/

Cheetahs coach Naka Drotske said this week that his team will attack the Hurricanes through the scrum and rolling maul, but it is the home side’s defence that will be the critical factor when the two teams meet in their Vodacom SuperRugby match in Bloemfontein on Friday night.

The Cheetahs – who at the start of the season were considered to be the only other real candidates alongside the Southern Kings for the promotion/relegation match – have a real chance of winning the South African Conference with four home games, visits to Port Elizabeth and Cape Town and a bye remaining in their regular season.

And it is because their defence has been so much better this year that they still have a say in the title race, conceding just 19 tries in 10 matches, which is second-best among the South African teams, equal with the Sharks.

Dominating the scrums and pushing the Hurricanes back with rolling mauls, even winning the territorial kicking battle, won’t win the Cheetahs the match. It is their defence and how well they frustrate the visitors, how many mistakes they can force them into, which will decide the outcome.

Although Drotske also said this week that the Hurricanes won’t try and run the ball from their own 22 like they did last weekend with disastrous consequences against the Bulls, they are a team that loves to attack with ball in hand and, if the only opportunities they get come from ball deep inside their own half, then they are bound to try it again.

That’s how the Bulls came away with the loot last weekend: forcing the Hurricanes into playing their game from bad positions and ensuring their offensive defence exposed them to turnover tries and penalties.

The Bulls have a bye this weekend and it is important for the Cheetahs to win and keep in touch with the Conference leaders.

For the Stormers, on the other hand, victory in Sydney against the Waratahs is imperative because they are already eight points behind the Bulls, who get four more points from the Sanzar wise men for doing nothing this weekend.

The Stormers have been under pressure the whole season and the cracks are showing. The Sanzar disciplinary council is investigating alleged abuse of officials by their sideline management during their win over the Hurricanes in Wellington on 26 April and last weekend they dominated almost all facets against the Blues, but still ended up on the losing side.

The Waratahs, with their pack of eight Wallabies and lethal attackers out wide in Israel Folau, Peter Betham and Adam Ashley-Cooper, have the resources to punish the Stormers for any mistakes.

A lot of those mistakes – poor tactical kicking, a lack of vision on attack and bad discipline at the rucks were all in evidence in Auckland last weekend – are caused by pressure.

The Stormers will have to be at their best, 100% focused and efficient in their execution, if they are to beat the Waratahs.

Jean de Villiers’s team can also do with the New South Welshmen suffering from some travel fatigue after flying back from South Africa this week.

The same pressure is on the Sharks, with the additional burden of a terrible injury list, as they face the Reds in Brisbane, and those same mistakes have been evident as an unfocused team has sunk to four straight defeats.

The Sharks have only won eight out of 29 matches in Australia, but those stats don’t reveal that they beat the Reds in Brisbane in last year’s playoffs, against great odds, and hammered them 59-16 there in 2007.

In tough times, rugby teams tend to look inward and play for each other, and Sharks coach John Plumtree is hoping that’s exactly what will happen as last year’s finalists battle to stay alive in the competition.

“We want to take the pressure off, play for each other, play for the jersey, that’s important. We’re in a different set of circumstances with the team because of the fact that we have so many guys out, we just have to put our heads together. We’ve sent four-to-five guys home and we are only halfway through the tour. We’ve had to change personnel, we’ve had to play players out of position and that is not great,” Plumtree said.

Springbok wing JP Pietersen is one of those players out of position as he shifts into midfield to replace Francois Steyn, who is out for the rest of the campaign, while Jean Deysel is back in the loose trio. Former Lions captain JC Janse van Rensburg makes his first start in the front row.

On paper, the Sharks certainly have enough power in their pack – with the added boost of Willem Alberts coming off the bench – and enough skill all round to beat the Reds, who will be without their indisposed captain and lock, the inspirational James Horwill. But what really matters is what frame of mind the Sharks are in after all their travails.

The Southern Kings are playing host to overseas visitors again on Saturday and will hopefully not be as gracious as they were last weekend to the Waratahs. The Australians had just come from Tshwane with their tails between their legs after a 30-19 loss to the Bulls, but the Kings opened their defensive lines and allowed them to help themselves to 11 tries in a morale-boosting 72-10 win.

The Highlanders visit this weekend and they have already been boosted by their victory over the Sharks in Dunedin last weekend, their first of the season. And they boast way more quality in their side than their recent record suggests.

Saturday’s match at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium is the Kings’ last before the bye and, having looked in a state of near-exhaustion last weekend, they will need one final big push to ensure they don’t get humiliated again.

One of the men who has really given them steel and purpose this season, loose forward Jacques Engelbrecht, is out injured and lightning-fast wing Sergeal Petersen is away with the SA U20 team preparing for the Junior World Championship.

Luke Watson returns as starting flank and captain, and a tired team, after 10 straight matches, could really do with some inspiration from him.

The Highlanders are now just one point behind the Kings on the log and Saturday’s encounter could decide the wooden spoon, which the Eastern Cape team have done heck of a well to avoid up till now.

But if they err in defence like they did last weekend, then the Highlanders have the players to cut them to shreds in Aaron and Ben Smith, Hosea Gear, Tamati Ellison and Colin Slade.

It will be the likes of All Blacks Mose Tuiali’i, Brad Thorn, Andrew Hore and Tony Woodcock who will lay the platform up front for the visitors.

Teams

The Sharks (v Reds, Friday 11:40): Riaan Viljoen, Piet Lindeque, JP Pietersen, Meyer Bosman, Lwazi Mvovo, Pat Lambie, Charl McLeod, Keegan Daniel, Jean Deysel, Marcell Coetzee, Franco van der Merwe, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Wiehahn Herbst, Kyle Cooper, JC Janse van Rensburg. Replacements: Monde Hadebe, Jannie du Plessis, Anton Bresler, Derick Minnie, Willem Alberts, Tian Meyer, Odwa Ndungane.

Cheetahs (v Hurricanes, Friday 19:10): Hennie Daniller, Willie le Roux, Johann Sadie, Robert Ebersohn, Raymond Rhule, Burton Francis, Piet van Zyl, Phillip van der Walt, Frans Viljoen, Heinrich Brüssow, Francois Uys, Lood de Jager, Lourens Adriaanse, Adriaan Strauss, Coenie Oosthuizen. Replacements: Ryno Barnes, Trevor Nyakane, Ligtoring Landman, Boom Prinsloo, Sarel Pretorius, Elgar Watts, Ryno Benjamin.

Stormers (v Waratahs, Saturday, 11:40): Joe Pietersen, Gio Aplon, Juan de Jongh, Jean de Villiers, Bryan Habana, Gary van Aswegen, Dewaldt Duvenage, Duane Vermeulen, Rynhardt Elstadt, Siya Kolisi, Andries Bekker, Eben Etzebeth, Frans Malherbe, Deon Fourie, Steven Kitshoff. Replacements: Scarra Ntubeni, Pat Cilliers, Don Armand, Nizaam Carr, Louis Schreuder, Elton Jantjies, Gerhard van den Heever.

Southern Kings (v Highlanders, Saturday 17:05): George Whitehead, Marcello Sampson, Ronnie Cooke, Andries Strauss, Siyanda Grey, Demetri Catrakilis, Shaun Venter, Cornell du Preez, Luke Watson, Wimpie van der Walt, David Bulbring, Steven Sykes, Kevin Buys, Bandise Maku, Schalk Ferreira. Replacements: Virgile Lacombe, Grant Kemp, Daniel Adongo, Devin Oosthuizen, Nicolas Vergallo, Shane Gates, SP Marais.

Other fixtures: Chiefs v Force (Friday 9:35); Blues v Rebels (Saturday, 11:40).

Byes: Bulls, Crusaders, Brumbies.

http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2013-05-09-superrugby-preview-defence-and-patience-key-for-the-cheetahs/#.VdsFKPmqqko