Bulls unchanged for Brumbies

Editor

Bulls head coach Nollis Marais named an unchanged team for their Super Rugby clash with the Brumbies at GIO Stadium in Canberra on Friday.

The Bulls started their tour with a win over the Force in Perth last week.

There is one change on the bench, with Dan Kriel getting his first run on tour and Dries Swanepoel dropping out of matchday squad.

Jason Jenkins has not recovered from his niggle and was not considered, but Bjorn Basson overcame an ankle sprain and is fit to face the Australians.

"We had a good start and I was pleased with the way we played in Perth, but it all starts again," Marais said.

"The Brumbies are one of the powerhouse teams in Australia and will ask different questions to our attack and defense. They are playing good rugby and we need to be sharp. I am pleased that we have the same team, as it means that we will go into the match with some consistency and momentum."

Ahead of the Canberra clash, Bulls captain, Adriaan Strauss, confirmed his team's goals for this tour.

"We did play well last weekend, but we cannot really afford to sit back and enjoy that as the Brumbies will be coming at us from the start," he said.

"Canberra can be a difficult place to play, but we have won there before.

"The team are gelling nicely and I am looking forward to a good match where we will try to be competitive in all aspects of play. The Brumbies are going to test all aspects of our play, so we need to be ready to front up."

Bulls: 15 SP Marais, 14 Travis Ismaiel, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Jan Serfontein, 11 Bjorn Basson, 10 Francois Brummer, 9 Piet van Zyl, 8 Hanro Liebenberg, 7 Arno Botha, 6 Lappies Labuschagne, 5 RG Snyman, 4 Marvin Orie, 3 Marcel van der Merwe, 2 Adriaan Strauss (c), 1 Trevor Nyakane
Replacements: 16 Bandise Maku, 17 Lizo Gqoboka, 18 Werner Kruger, 19 Jannes Kirsten, 20 Roelof Smit, 21 Rudy Paige, 22 Tian Schoeman, 23 Dan Kriel

Date: Friday, April 6
Venue: GIO Stadium, Canberra
Kick-off: 19:45 local (09:45 GMT)
Referee: Ben O'Keeffe
Assistant Referees: Will Houston, Ed Martin
TMO: Peter Marshall