Bulls back Willie Le Roux at 10, Papier to break Joost’s all-time record and Marco van Staden starts at hooker
Scrum-halves Joost van der Westerhuizen and Embrose Papier.
Bulls head coach Johan Ackermann has made several alterations to his matchday 23 for the clash against Zebre in the penultimate round of the United Rugby Championship.
The headline selections include Willie Le Roux starting at fly-half, with Handre Pollard named on the bench, while Marco van Staden will pack down in the front row.
Willie Le Roux at fly-half, Embrose Papier to break Joost van der Westerhuizen’s record
Ackermann has named an exciting backline with Kurt-Lee Arendse starting at full-back, and is joined by the lightning wingers Cheswill Jooste and Sergeal Petersen. Canan Moodie and Harold Vorster combine in the centres.
Embrose Papier and Pollard drop to the bench after starting in the victory over the Scarlets last time out, with Le Roux and Paul de Wet taking over the 10 and nine jerseys, respectively.
Papier is poised to play his 170th match for the Bulls and which will see him surpass the late great Joost van der Westhuizen as the most-capped scrumhalf of all-time.
Into the forward pack and Marco van Staden gets his first start at hooker this season for the Bulls, having shone off the bench in the position whilst also featuring on the side of the scrum. He is flanked by Springboks props Jan-Hendrik Wessels and Wilco Louw whilst Ruan Vermaak and JF van Heerden start in the engine room. That means that Ruan Nortje is rested for the clash against the Italians.
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Marcell Coetzee captains the side from the number six jumper with Jeandre Rudolph in the seven jersey and Cameron Hanekom completing the pack.
Ackermann has opted for the conventional 5-3 split on the bench with Johan Grobbelaar, Gerhard Steenekamp, Francois Klopper, Cobus Wiese, and Mpilo Gumede providing cover up front with Papier, Pollard, and Stedman Gans named as the backline replacements.
The Bulls head into the fixture ranked seventh on the United Rugby Championship standings with 49 points. A bonus-point victory over the Italians will all but confirm their place in the quarter-finals, with Connacht being the only team ranked outside the top eight in with a chance, and they can get a maximum of 44 league points.
Bulls team v Zebre
Bulls: 15 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 14 Cheswill Jooste, 13 Canan Moodie, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Sergeal Petersen, 10 Willie le Roux, 9 Paul de Wet, 8 Cameron Hanekom, 7 Jeandre Rudolph, 6 Marcell Coetzee, 5 JF van Heerden, 4 Ruan Vermaak, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Marco van Staden, 1 Jan Hendrik Wessels
Replacements: 16 Johan Grobbelaar, 17 Gerhard Steenekamp, 18 Francois Klopper, 19 Cobus Wiese, 20 Mpilo Gumede, 21 Embrose Papier, 22 Handre Pollard, 23 Stedman Gans
Venue: Loftus Versfeld Stadium (Pretoria)
Kick-off: 12:45 IRE & UK / 13:45 ITA & SA
Referee: Ben Whitehouse (WRU, 115th game)
Assistant Referees: Griffin Colby (SARU), Dylen November (SARU)
TMO: Adam Jones (WRU)
How to watch: SuperSport, Premier Sports, URC.tv and FloRugby
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