Johan Ackermann has lifted the lid on his key selection calls ahead of their crunch Vodacom URC clash against Munster at Loftus.
The biggest talking point is a rejig in the midfield, with Harold Vorster returning, Stedman Gans shifting to outside centre, and Canan Moodie moving back to the wing.
“There are a few reasons. Harold played well before the concussion so he obviously deserves his position. We also feel that Stedman has been playing well and gives us the option of playing at 13, and Canan is also one of the world’s best wingers as well as 13, so he’s proven himself. He just shifts out. Cheswil [Jooste] is still in his process of learning and developing. It’s a massive game for us before we go in tour, so we just felt it gives us a little more experience and stability.”
TEAM: Bulls back Willie for Munster clash
Ackermann admitted that strong competition within the squad continues to make selection a balancing act.
“The loosies make it difficult. If you look at the team, Juandré [Rudolph] isn’t even in the team and that’s the difficult part of coaching. Here and there we’ve tried to rotate, but the core of the team we’ve tried to keep as far as possible just to build that continuity.
“The reality is we have to rotate, and much of what determines rotation is how we want to play given our opposition. It’s not a perfect science and sometimes changes are forced on you.”
Looking to Saturday, the Bulls boss expects a fired-up Munster outfit, regardless of their blanking at hands of the Sharks in Durban last weekend.
ALSO: Season over for Bok big gun
“They’ll be highly motivated and will be coming out with an intensity and a determination that we expect. Regardless of the result against the Sharks, if you look at their history, Munster is one of the most consistent URC teams and in Europe, so I think they’ll come to set things right.
“Tactically, they have the ability to string several phases together and to shift the ball to the edges, so our defence will have to be sharp. We’re also expecting their nine and ten – who’ve just returned from international rugby – will do a lot of tactical kicking so we’ll have to be good at dealing with that as well.”
AFRICA PICKS: URC Round 14 – Betting preview
Photo: Anton Geyser/Gallo Images
The post Ackers backs Vorster, Gans to give midfield bite appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
