Ludeke breaks down the openside
Bulls coach Frans Ludeke has selected two openside flanks for his team's Super 14 opener against the Stormers in Cape Town on Saturday.
Bulls coach Frans Ludeke has selected two openside flanks for his team's Super 14 opener against the Stormers in Cape Town on Saturday.
In an interesting move, Ludeke has opted to play Wikus van Heerden and Deon Stegmann on the side of the scrum, in an effort to be more competitive at the breakdown points.
The new Bulls coach feels the breakdown will be a key aspect at Newlands.
Ludeke said that securing possession at the breakdown will be absolutely crucial under the Experimental Law Variations (ELVs), which come into effect this season.
He said that during the Bulls' pre-season match against the Lions in Windhoek there were just three scrums and 22 line-outs, but over 150 rucks under – as a result of the ELVs.
While free kicks are designed to speed up matches, Bulls captain Fourie du Preez fears that there might be more infringements, as players will no longer be penalised.
“If the referee doesn't see what is happening at the bottom of the ruck and a player succeeds to do something illegal, he wins possession for his team. That is why I believe players will take more chances in the Super 14,” a slightly concerned Du Preez said.
Du Preez added that the Bulls are still adapting to the new laws, but he thinks it will take a number of weeks to see the full impact of them on the game.
“We played two matches under the news laws and we learned on every occasion. The second game was much easier, but we will definitely watch the games on Friday to see if we can pick up any trends,” he added.
While pundits observe the impact of the ELVs on the match this Saturday, all eyes will also be on what is a new-look back three for the Bulls – which features wing John Mametsa, the top try scorer in the Absa Currie Cup, and Griquas fullback Zane Kirchner, the Vodacom Cup Player of the Year.
The Bulls are considerably stretched in the second row, with Springbok lock Bakkies Botha still recovering from an ankle injury – having also lost Victor Matfield (to Toulon), Francois van Schouwenburg (Toulon) and Adrian Fondse (Stormers).
Ludeke hasn't named a replacement lock on the bench – a risky move should either of the starting locks, Danie Rossouw and Wilhelm Steenkamp, get injured.
However, the Bulls coach is confident he has adequate cover.
“Pedrie Wannenburg played lock in a Currie Cup Final and if we pick up an injury we can always use short line-outs.
“With Bakkies Botha on the injury list we are obviously thin at lock, but I don't foresee any problems for Saturday,” added the Bulls coach.
Bulls: 15 Zane Kirchner, 14 John Mametsa, 13 JP Nel, 12 Wynand Olivier, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Derick Hougaard, 9 Fourie du Preez (captain), 8 Pedrie Wannenburg, 7 Wikus van Heerden, 6 Deon Stegmann, 5 Wilhelm Steenkamp, 4 Danie Rossouw, 3 Rayno Gerber, 2 Derick Kuün, 1 Gurthrö Steenkamp.
Replacements: 16 James van der Walt, 17 Jaco Engels, 18 Werner Kruger, 19 Dewald Potgieter, 20 Heini Adams, 21 Morné Steyn, 22 Marius Delport
Date: Saturday, 16 February
Venue: Newlands, Cape Town
Kick-off: 17.00 (15.00 GMT)
Referee: Willie Roos (South Africa)
Touch judges: Jaco Peyper (South Africa), Linston Manuels (South Africa)
Television match official: Shaun Veldsman (South Africa)
Assessor: Dennis Immelman (South Africa)
Performance auditor: Ian Scotney (Australia)