Cape Town — The Bulls are still smarting from their loss to Glasgow, but will be bolstered by two Springboks in Johan Goosen and Sbu Nkosi for Saturday’s United Rugby Championship (URC) clash against Munster (8.35pm kick-off).
The Pretoria side went down 35-21 to the Warriors at Scotstoun Stadium last weekend, where a number of attacking opportunities were wasted.
Bulls boss Jake White will hope that the return of Goosen and Nkosi will add much-needed bite to the backline, with another Test player in Canan Moodie out for eight weeks with a hamstring injury.
Bulls attack coach Chris Rossouw confirmed from Europe on Tuesday that Goosen — who sat out the Glasgow match due to the 4G pitch — a surface on which he sustained a serious knee injury against Cardiff last year — and Nkosi, who has recovered from concussion, will be available for selection.
“Jake also has a plan on how he wants to rotate the group, and one thing he made clear is that if there are any changes made, it is not in reference to the game and what happened last week. We are busy with a process and are building a team, and we are going to stick to that,” Rossouw said.
In that regard, veteran hooker Bismarck du Plessis may be a good option to replace youngster Jan-Hendrik Wessels, who battled with his line-out-throwing against Glasgow, while the Bulls pack as a whole felt the heat from the home side’s physicality.
Munster’s forwards will provide an even sterner test at Thomond Park in Limerick.
“Munster didn’t start so well, but they have really good players there. They were also affected by some of their players being part of the Emerging Ireland team that played in South Africa, and they will get some of those guys back,” Rossouw said.
“They have a very good record in Limerick, and we are looking forward to bouncing back in this game. They have a strong pack and two good nines who can control the game.
“It was frustrating that we had multiple 22-metre entries, but couldn’t convert (against Glasgow). The one reason is that our maul got disrupted — whether it was done legally or illegally — and we need to find a different way.
“They also attacked our breakdown, and we cleared up some issues with the ref there. But we noted that we need to make a step up in that department, as it was really disappointing.”
Rossouw said that the Bulls need to handle the referee’s interpretations on the pitch as well, having got onto the wrong side of Andrew Brace’s whistle in Glasgow.
“Anyone that coaches knows that’s gold — to have that ability within the game, in the heat of the moment, to make plans and adapt,” the former Stormers and WP flyhalf said.
“That’s something you try to incorporate into your training, so that you can constantly find a different way — and obviously we didn’t do that.
“It’s something we’ve spoken about … how to vary it. But it’s difficult to catch up.
“But if you look at the positives, we had a lot of opportunities, and now we need to be a bit more smart to unlock them. It’s something we discuss and grow together as a group.”
IOL Sport