From Currie Cup to Super Rugby
LABUSCHAGNE: FLANKER STEPS UP AND WILL FACE KINGS
Coach Nollis Marais rings the changes for Saturday.
Lappies Labuschagne, the Currie Cup captain, was named yesterday in the Bulls starting line-up for the first time in this year’s Super Rugby competition as the three-time champions travel to Port Elizabeth to take on the Southern Kings on Saturday.
Labuschagne will replace the in-form Roelof Smit, one of the players Nollis Marais rates most highly, in the No 6 jersey, with the coach saying he wanted to increase the amount of experience in the side.
For the same reason, Marais decided to move Jesse Kriel to outside centre and play the well-travelled SP Marais at fullback after the injury to centre Burger Odendaal necessitated a backline shuffle, while Springbok Arno Botha returns at No 8 and veteran prop Werner Kruger has been included on the bench.
“We are battling with a lack of experience, there are a lot of youngsters in the team, 12 guys are in their first year of Super Rugby. We need more stability and some consistency in order to win some matches properly. The 80-minute performance I want will only come from starting the same side week in, week out.
“Last week our numbers four to eight had only 23 caps combined so Lappies will settle the forwards down, he brings calmness and he can take over the captaincy should anything happen to Adriaan Strauss or we want to give him a rest,” Marais said at Loftus Versfeld.
The other changes to the Bulls team see Piet van Zyl starting at scrumhalf and Trevor Nyakane back in the No 1 jersey, with Rudy Paige and Lizo Gqoboka both suffering minor injuries last weekend against the Cheetahs. Marvin Orie and Dan Kriel, Jesse’s twin brother, are new faces on the bench as well, as Marais tries to find the best combination for the new game plan he is introducing to the Bulls.
“I want to back the young guys in this new project and we have to stick to the new way we want to play. Unfortunately last weekend we got back into some old habits and there were a lot of opportunities to go wide which weren’t taken. We have to change the way we think, it’s a brand new way of playing and a different mindset, and the only way to do it is through trial and error,” Marais said.