Johannesburg – Having Marcell Coetzee and Marco van Staden in the same team is finally a reality for Bulls coach Jake White, after the latter signed a contract with the Pretoria-based team from 1 September.
Van Staden left the Bulls at the end of the 2020-21 season to join English club Leicester Tigers, but has hardly featured due to concussion after a head knock and he was eventually released.
But he has worked hard off the field, and at the South African launch of the 2022-23 United Rugby Championship campaign in Midrand on Tuesday, White expressed his delight at recruiting the openside flank.
“I’ve also got some good news in that we’ve signed Marco van Staden from the first of September. So, we’ve got a nice addition there, another Springbok in the squad,” the Bulls director of rugby said.
“I said I would love to have them both in the same team (Van Staden and Marcell Coetzee), and as it stands now, I have got them both in one team. We didn’t want to lose Marco because at that point in time, he was playing really well for the Bulls. The failure of some teams is that there is so much change every year.
“Our squad is our squad, and on Friday (in a friendly), the team that played last year will play against all the new boys this year, and I know what I’ve got. So, fantastic to have Marco back – not only for us, but South African rugby as well. We’ve got to try to get that calibre of player back to play URC.”
The former Bok coach explained that Van Staden is in good health. “He hasn’t played rugby for eight months. He’s had absolutely no side-effects – nothing, not even a headache during training – in the eight months,” White said.
“Sometimes it happens ... Cornal Hendricks was in the same boat, and he’s played every week for us. The challenge is that he has a certain amount of time that he’s got to get through, and then the insurance kicks in – like anything.
“The risk is no different to anyone else. He can bang his head in Friday’s friendly, or whack his head against someone’s hip in a training session this afternoon. Having been with him over the last couple of weeks, he can’t wait to play. Eight months is a long time, and he can’t wait to get back onto the field.”
The Bulls came just short of clinching the URC title, going down 18-13 in the final against the Stormers at Cape Town Stadium.
It’s going to be even tougher this season due to the SA sides competing in the Champions Cup, but they are ready to rumble ahead of the URC opener against the Lions at Ellis Park next Saturday.
“We didn’t have a long pre-season because like the Stormers, we finished later than most. But having coached in Europe, one of the more important things is the time you give them off. To play friendlies now and extra games, come January and February, you are going to end up with a lot of attrition in your squad,” White said.
“We probably would’ve liked more time, but we are going to play a friendly against each other on Friday, and it will just be like a little hit-out. And then next week we kick off against the Lions at Ellis Park.
“A guy like Johan Grobbelaar was told to put some weight on, and you won’t believe how much bigger he’s got. We would’ve loved to have had Canan Moodie on a gym programme as well, but as it’s turned out, he’s obviously doing well in the Bok set-up.
“We’ve had four Springboks capped after one campaign in a short space of time – Elrigh Louw, Ruan Nortje, Kurt-Lee Arendse and Canan Moodie. Suddenly you have four more Springboks in your set-up, which is always a massive boost when you go into those big games.”
IOL Sport