Johan Ackermann has clarified his selection of Morné Smith ahead of Wilco Louw for Saturday’s derby against the Sharks at Loftus.
Louw only recently returned from a Springbok-mandated rest period and Ackermann believes now is the right time to give Smith a proper shot.
“Wilco, Handré (Pollard) and Kurt-Lee (Arendse) all just returned from their rest, so they’re all looking good,” Ackermann told the media.
“Because Wilco hasn’t played in a while, we just felt that Morné was busy building some momentum and that this will be a great opportunity for him to test himself. The reality is, we won’t have Wilco here next season so Morné has to show us that he can do it.”
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The Bulls are now forced to look ahead to life without the burly tighthead and Smith now has a prime-stage audition against Springbok Ox Nché. The Sharks pack outlasted the Bulls 21-12 in Durban the last time the sides met in the URC back in December.
Jan-Hendrik Wessels starts in the middle of the front row, but it’s on the bench where there’s an interesting selection. Marco van Staden has been named as replacement hooker after Ackermann decided not to risk Johan Grobbelaar due to a niggle.
“Johan Grobbelaar had a bit of a knock to the neck against the Lions, then it recovered a bit but then he felt it again against Boland,” Ackermann explained.
“Scans show it’s not any structural damage, just some soft tissue. So we’ve decided to rest him because we felt we have Jan-Hendrik and we have Marco doing well for us at hooker. Marco has been training there, but we’ll only make a call in-game whether to bring him on as a hooker or back-rower.”
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Ackermann expects a different contest to the one in Durban, when both sides were going through some stormy waters.
“Ultimately I think both teams have developed and made some changes and players coming back, so it’s a new game. We want to play to our standards and make sure we put a performance in that we can be proud of.”
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Photo: Sydney Seshibedi/Gallo Images
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