Bulls to carry momentum from strong tour into Lions clash

The Bulls hope to carry their momentum during a successful two-week tour of Europe into their massive United Rugby Championship derby against the Lions on Saturday.

The Gauteng rivals meet at Ellis Park (kick-off 2.30pm) after the Lions secured a bonus-point 43-33 win at Loftus in November.

The Bulls are a different team than they were two months ago, throwing off their seven-match losing streak with two important away wins.

The Bulls first beat French giants Pau at Stade du Hameau, winning their Champions Cup pool match 26-24. They followed that up with another two-point win against Edinburgh (19-17) at Hive Stadium – their first-ever win against Edinburgh in Scotland.

That lifted the Bulls from 11th to ninth on the URC table.

Head coach Johan Ackermann said it is still too early to say their season is turning around.

‘Use the same synergy’

Loose forward Marcell Coetzee, who captained the team in both wins ahead of usual captain Ruan Nortjé, believes the Bulls need to hold onto that winning and cohesive mindset.

“Every win on tour is so special. If you manage to get two in a row, what it does for the group is immense,” he said.

“In saying that, you have to use the same synergy you built on tour back at home. I think the biggest drive for us as leaders is to continue the great morale going forward.

“If you’re a happy team off the field, the results will show on the field. I think we managed to get that right on tour but it’s important to keep driving that culture.”

Bulls keep to their own game plan

The Lions scored six tries to the Bulls’ five in their win in Pretoria and are likely to adopt another attacking approach at home. Coetzee said the Bulls would maintain their DNA – a balance of set-piece, forward play, kicking and running – regardless of what the Lions do.

“We have a few game leaders on the pitch – Ruan Nortjé, Handré Pollard and Willie le Roux. And all the players there. It’s up to them to drive it.

“We don’t really want to get sucked into someone else’s DNA. We know what our strengths and weaknesses are, and those of the opposition.

“But it’s all about transferring what you trained during the week [into] the day. Especially when you play away, it is vital to use your opportunities. We have certain platforms that will set us up for that, but all-in-all it needs to be a buy-in from everyone.”