CAPE TOWN - It’s the big North-South derby at Newlands on Saturday.
Wynona Louw on the Stormers half of the field and Vata Ngobeni on the Bulls half of the field take a light-hearted look at a match steeped in rugby history.
Wynona Louw - Stormers
So it’s been a while since the Bulls last enjoyed a victorious trip to Newlands (if you can consider six years as ‘a while’) and the Pretoria side will be eager to break that drought on Saturday night.
And it will be interesting to see how they try and do it.
Or maybe not. I mean, it’s the Bulls - so what we can expect from them is probably their characteristic solid pack of forwards a big battle at the set-pieces a pin-point kicking game, and so on and so on.
Oh, and I think the signing of Springbok lock Lood de Jager has given the Bulls even more punch in the pack - he’s superb at the line-outs and he can form a lethal partnership with RG Snyman. But I think that’s about all the physical contribution that Lood can make, after all, the Stormers have Eben Etzebeth to dominate all other physical battles (just ask Lood).
But then again, all those traits haven’t worked for the former Pink Bulls in Cape Town lately, so I wonder what they’re cooking up this time?
I hear there’s huge excitement around Handre Pollard’s return. You know, him offering so much attacking ability and all. But it’s not like the Bulls are the only ones who boast an exciting flyhalf.
The Stormers have Robert du Preez and Jean-Luc du Plessis, two men who rank high when it comes to beefing up a side’s attack.
But what other areas are there that the Bulls can look to go one-up in against the Stormers?
I don’t see it happening on the wing, or in midfield, or at fullback. In fact, the only area that I definitely see their players claiming is the style one. And by that I don’t mean playing style, just look at guys like Tian Schoeman and Luther Obi and you’ll get what I’m saying.
Vata Ngobeni - Bulls
Round one of the Eben Etzebeth and Lood de Jager duel at Newlands last year may have gone to the home town boy.
But De Jager is a different player and wrestler to what he was last year and he will come to Newlands to serve a reminder to the rugby world and Etzebeth, in particular, on why he was South Africa’s best player two years ago.
There can be no denying that De Jager was far from his best last year after a spate of injuries and poor form while at the Cheetahs but he has found a new lease on life with his move to the Bulls and if the pre-season stuff is anything to go by, then Etzebeth and Pieter-Steph du Toit will have to battle it out for the other lock jersey in the Springbok team.
This time around De Jager will be coming to Newlands with one RG Snyman and if Etzebeth thought his size is intimidating, then he’ll have his hands full with Snyman standing toe-to-toe with him
Springbok prop Trevor Nyakane has stayed away from looking at the muffins and is once again looking in the best shape of his rugby life.
Nyakane’s move to tighthead prop has been nothing short of a stroke of genius from the Bulls brains trust and while he is also famous from his moves on the dance floor, Nyakane will be making the Stormers frontrow do the moonwalk.
But the star of Saturday’s show at Newlands won’t be a player in the Stormers jersey but rather in a Bulls jersey.
Bulls captain Handre Pollard can’t not be the main act especially at Newlands and who can forget how he led the Junior Springboks to that world title in 2012.
There might not be a title on the line yet but Pollard has promised some heroics against the franchise that didn’t do enough to keep him as a schoolboy prodigy on a field he long considered his theatre of dreams.