Match 44 - Reds vs Bulls

Vodacom Bulls captain Burger Odendaal makes a welcomed return to the starting team, after an injury that kept him side-lined for two weeks, with the Vodacom Bulls looking forward to their first tour match against the Reds at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday, 14 March 2020.

The only other change made by Vodacom Bulls head coach, Pote Human, is positional with Johnny Kotze reverting back to outside centre, freeing up the number 12 jersey for Odendaal.

The last 13 Vodacom Super Rugby matches between the two teams have been won by the home team. The last four meetings in Brisbane have been won by the Reds albeit by seven points or less which bodes well for the Vodacom Bulls who are out to earn their first win in Brisbane since 2004.

Human explained the minimal changes as keeping the winning formula intact.

“The players put up their hands last week and have been rewarded for their efforts. The combinations worked well and the bench complemented the efforts of the starters.”

“Our scrums were good as were our lineouts but there is always work to be done especially in terms of discipline.”

“Having Burger back is great. The players enjoy his leadership and he leads from the front along with Trevor, so we expect them to get the best out of the guys on Saturday,” explained Human.

“It is good to be back in the mix. It was frustrating not to be involved last weekend but I’m sure that’s the feeling of any side-lined athlete,” smiled Odendaal.

“I’m here now and ready to give my all come game day. I definitely feel for Nafi. He’s a solid guy, talented and fitting in well in terms of our culture, so leaving him back home to recover was not a nice feeling. It’s still a long season, and there’s a lot of work to be done, so we need him and everybody in the squad to be ready.”

Kick-off is 10:15 (SA time).

Vodacom Bulls: 15. Warrick Gelant, 14. Cornal Hendricks, 13. Johnny Kotze, 12. Burger Odendaal (C), 11. Rosko Specman, 10. Manie Libbok, 9. Embrose Papier, 8. Muller Uys, 7. Josh Strauss, 6. Marco van Staden, 5. Ruan Nortje, 4. Ian Groenewald ,a 3. Trevor Nyakane, 2. Jaco Visagie, 1. Lizo Gqoboka.

Finishers: 16. Corniel Els, 17. Gerhard Steenekamp, 18. Wiehahn Herbst, 19. Ryno Pieterse, 20. Ruan Steenkamp, 21. Ivan van Zyl, 22. Morné Steyn, 23. Divan Rossouw.