The stakes are high, as both teams are fighting to improve their standings on the Currie Cup table. Griquas have had a rocky run and find themselves in 10th position, but the Bulls have been struggling and find themselves rock bottom in eighth spot.
THE WINDHOEK Draught Griquas are gearing up for a tough Currie Cup match-up against the Vodacom Blue Bulls at Loftus Versveld on Friday evening.
The Bulls have called up seasoned coach Jake White to take the reins of the Currie Cup outfit, and one can be sure they will be a handful at home.
The stakes are high, as both teams are fighting to improve their standings on the Currie Cup table. Griquas have had a rocky run and find themselves in 10th position, but the Bulls have been struggling and find themselves rock bottom in eighth spot.
Griquas know that they are going to be up against a tough opponent, especially now that the Bulls have several Springbok players in their squad, and they want to mean business.
❗️TEAM ANNOUNCEMENT
Not available due to injury:
Malcom Jaer – SC joint sprain.
Andrew Beerwinkel – Knee Injury obtained whilst on loan to Boland. pic.twitter.com/QyYL3Qj8WT
— Griquas Rugby (@GriquasRugby) April 6, 2023
In fact, Springboks Kurt-Lee Arendse and Canan Moodie have been included as Jake White has gone full metal jacket with his Blue Bulls team. The Bulls are in the midst of a 10-match losing streak in all competitions, and White will hope that his best players can finally break that duck against Griquas.
Head coach of the Griquas, Pieter Bergh, said that they have gained enough confidence and have plenty of games they can fall back on to look at how they played against the Bulls at Loftus in the past.
“What a challenge this will be; every player and coach wants to play and coach at a higher level, and this will be a great match to be able to test us, and hopefully it will bring the best out of the players. This will also show that the players have the potential to play at that higher level,” said Bergh.
But knowing the Griquas, they are not intimidated. They have been working hard in practice and are ready to give it their all on the field.
Coach Bergh had emphasised the importance of playing a full 80-minute game. He knows that the Griquas have a tendency to start putting points on the board in the second half, but that would not be enough against a team like the Bulls. They need to play their best from the start and maintain that level of intensity throughout the entire match.
“In the last year, especially the second half of the year in the previous season, we have played better rugby in the second half of a game. It is not something that we plan on doing; we talk about it each week that we need to start our games better, but luckily our players have the confidence to be able to turn a game around in the second half if things don’t go well in the first (half).
“During our halftime break against the DHL Western Province, we spoke about how we were going to stop the silly mistakes we made in the first half. We understand that if we want to be the top team in the Currie Cup, we can’t make so many mistakes in the first half of the game.
“In the first half of the game against the Western Province, we made 18 mistakes that cost us, and when we came back in the second half, we only made five mistakes.
“By fixing mistakes, you go from being 13 points behind in the first half to putting 32 points on the board during the second half.
“The players know that if they are clinical and accurate in their play, they are a very good team, and we know that if we make many mistakes, we don’t get into the groove of playing well.
“This week we have really focused on ourselves. Our attacking, defending, and general intensity We know what we need to do against the Bulls, and if our planning is in place, we stand a good chance against them, Berg concluded.
Come what may, this game between these two formidable teams is going to be a ripper. Will the Griquas make the Kimberley supporters jump for joy, or will the Blue Bulls put a damper on that?
Windhoek Draught Griquas (15-1): Lubabalo Dobela, Rosko Specman, Jay-Cee Nel, Eddie Fouche, Luther Obi, George Whitehead, Johan Mulder, Carl Els, Hanru Sirgel (captain), Stephan Smit, Albert Liebenberg, Derik Pretorius, Cebo Dlamini, Gustav du Rand, Eddie Davids. Bench (16-23): Janco Uys, Kudzwai Dube, Janu Botha, Michael Amiras, Niel Otto, Reagan Oranje, Sango Xamlashe, Sako Makata (Currie Cup Debut)
