Die Vodacom Bulls gaan die volgende twee weke van die Vodacom Super Rugby-toernooi sonder Jan Serfontein moet klaarkom. Die senter het ‘n kniebesering in die Bulls se 20-19 sege oor die Sharks opgedoen en volgens spandokter Org Strauss gaan hy minstens twee weke buite aksie wees.
Jacques Potgieter (hand), Akona Ndungane (dyspier), Mornè Mellett (nek), Wilhelm Steenkamp (nek), Ulrich Beyers (griep) en Hencus van Wyk (nek) oefen nie vandag nie weens ligte skete, maar sal weer Dinsdag op die oefenveld wees.
Cornell Hess (knie), Lionel Mapoe (skouer), Arno Botha (knie), Pierre Spies (bicep) en Louis Fouchè (knie) het almal langtermyn-beserings.
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The Vodacom Bulls will be without Jan Serfontein for the next two weeks of their Vodacom Super Rugby campaign. The midfielder sustained a knee injury in their 20-19 win over The Sharks last weekend and had been ruled out for at least two weeks, team doctor Org Strauss confirmed on Monday.
He is the only casualty from the win that moved the Vodacom Bulls to the top of the log.
Jacques Potgieter (hand), Akona Ndungane (hamstring), Mornè Mellett (neck), Wilhelm Steenkamp (neck), Ulrich Beyers (flu) and Hencus van Wyk (neck) will all miss training today due to minor ailments.
Cornell Hess (knee), Lionel Mapoe (shoulder), Arno Botha (knee), Pierre Spies (bicep) and Louis Fouchè are all long-term injuries.
Dammit i hope the Chiefs lose and open the door for the Bulls to send a 2nd team on the field against the Stormers. Ludeke must take the whole squad with him to Cape Town.
Here at the end of the campaign we have lost our number 7, 8, 9 and now 12 players, the heartbeat of our more exciting game plan.
The final death knell would be if we lose Morne Steyn
1 @ superBul:
Frans Ludeke said on Saturday night at the Presser that no matter what happens in the games before the Bulls play, that he will field his best 22 against the Stormers.
Hope the Stormers give ’em Bulls a hard and honest match, but loose now, don’t overdo it my dear mountain goaties
2 @ grootblousmile:
I understand where Super is coming from. Would be really bad for Bulls to lose Morne especially to injury now or any other big players. Though Ludeke is absolutely right he has to play his best 22 on Saturday. It is not like it was in 2010 when Bulls could start a 2nd side at Newlands as no matter what happened in that game they would still stay top of the log. Now if Brumbies get 5 points on Saturday they go to 64 while Bulls are on 63. So Bulls can’t take a chance by leaving out players and lose the game and not even pick up a losing bonus point. That would be really foolish to do that.
I have no doubt Chiefs will beat the Blues. Probably get the full points as well. Brumbies should beat the Force and probably pick up the full points there too. Well think Brumbies will beat them, not totally sure if they will grab the 5 points. If Bulls were on 67 points and none could catch them then absolutely they would play a 2nd side and not risk injury. They still need to make sure they stay top of the log. It could still go to Chiefs or Brumbies if Bulls lose. A full strength Bulls team should beat the Stormers. I doubt they will beat Bulls.
Cheetahs bye has come at the perfect time for them. They get a rest before they play their playoff game.
Good luck to both Bulls and Cheetahs for the rest of this tourney.
Good thing the Bulls game is played after the Chiefs and Brumbies games, they will know exactly what they need to do
Dammit, looking at the possibilities one do not want the Cheetahs to end 6th and the bulls 3rd – na kak idea, scrap it…
6 @ Gena_ZA:
Yip not great if that happens as one would knock one out of the tourney. Think Bulls will top the log this week, all they need to do is win. No need for bonus points this week.
It might be like last year. Cheetahs might have to travel to Oz to play Brumbies then head back to SA to play Bulls. If they win then they head back to play Chiefs. Could be almost the same as last year with a saffa side if that happens. Cheets will be more rested as they have this weekend off.
@ Puma:
Problem with the Cheetahs is that the had their worst games against the Hurricanes and Stormers after their 1st bye and then the enforced break for the tests.
They can’t afford to have another bad game after their 2nd bye, no second chances to get things going again.
It’s actually a pity that they are not sure whether they will be going to Canberra, Waikato or Pretoria for the playoff.
If they would assume that the Chiefs would pick up the win and the Bulls too, I would have packed up to Canberra already, go stay there, tell everyone what a great place it is ( bietjie gatkruip with the locals never hurt anyone ) and play a friendly against a club side on Saturday to make it feel as if they are still active.
8 @ nortierd:
I suppose it does happen when a team has a bye. Then some come back stronger. Remember my Sharks coming to play your Stormers in the semi last year after your team had a bye. They also lost there. So it might not keep the momentum going by having a rest. I somehow think with Cheetahs having a bye now will help. They must stay focused.
Season is so long the bodies are really sore now. Also plenty of the Cheethas played in the June tests. They will be looking forward to this bye. Bulls on the other hand had a really very, very hard game against my Sharks. They got out of jail there with us not kicking our goals. Still was a tough game no player stood back. I think they will beat the Stormers, but there too it will be a very hard physical game. Just hope no injuries to any of the players. Not only do Bulls need their players for the rest of this tourney. Boks need all the players playing this week to stay injury free.
See Lambie picked up what looks like a serious injury as it is a back injury. He went for scans today so we should know tomorrow how he is. You know his goal kicking was superb the whole season, had about 88% record, then after the June break his kicking for goal goes to pot. Something does not seem right. I wonder if he played with a slight back niggle last week and this week as well? Just guessing, because how can a player that is getting almost all his kicks over go from that to hardly not getting any over? Or was it that he sat on the Bench at Boks for weeks with hardly any game time? Have no idea. Butch should have taken over the kicking. Then I think somehow he might not want to do the kicking at goal to save his knees. Just a guess as he never took over last week either. Anyhow Serfontein is out for two weeks with a knee injury.
@ Puma:
He was under Koen’s influence for 3 weeks
Enough to make any kicker go off the boil
Personally, I would get Neil Jenkins as kicking coach, doesn’t matter at what price, it will be worth it
After Saturday, Butch should hang up his boots, the way he played was not what one would expect, especially from a captain
I have always liked Butch, but I think even he must realize that he is not up to playing with the youngsters anymore
It was a pointless expenditure for the Sharks buying him back
One meaningless game against the Lions, one SR game against the Blues and one disaster from a personal point of view plus letting down his team by getting carded is not worth whatever the invested in him.
It was sad to see your team revert back to their silly games with the chopping and changing of players just before kick off
If they didn’t want Daniels as captain or to start, just say so and get on with it
I actually enjoyed watching the game live as I wasn’t to worried about which team i wanted to win, was fun just going to enjoy the game and the vibe was good, well due to the end result
I laughed my butt off at some of the aunties who wanted to jump out of the suite and moer Japhta, geez they were angry with him, not to mention old Butch
I would love it if the Stormers beat the Bulls under most circumstances, but this weekend I’m not so sure I want it to happen for 2 reasons
1- if we should win they will probably grant AC the freedom of Cape Town and give him a 5 year extension on his contract, and I don’t think I will survive with him stuffing up our rugby for much longer
2- If the Bulls end top of the log I get to go and watch the semi and possibly the final at Loftus, and that should be fun
😀
10 @ nortierd:
Do you know who coached Jenkins to such a good goal kicker? It was Naas Botha. Remember Jenkins saying after the Lions test they won here where he out kicked us for the BIL to win that series. Anyhow he said he got coached by Naas Botha on kicking for goal. So then why do we not use the best goal kicker we ever had coach us at the Boks? Get Naas to be the kicking coach.
It very well could be that Lambie’s kicking has dipped since he was with the Boks. Then again in the very short time he had in June with them everytime he came on and had to take a kick he got them all never missed. He also never missed on against England. As had he even missed one there we would have lost. So have no idea why his kicking has lost its form. He was kicking at goal really brilliant this year.
On Butch he played superb on Saturday. Nothing wrong with this game. It was that brainless high tackle that he made that ruined it for himself. Remember the hair pulling (why he done that was just silly) came because Steenkamp HEAD BUTTED him. Steenkamp should have been sent off with a yellow card there. Instead the tmo was looking to see if the ball went forward. That ref was useless on Saturday. He should have seen that headbutt. Anyhow the citing officer saw it we all saw it and he has to cop a ban for that.
@ Puma:
If Steenkamp cops a ban the Bulls have a problem
Kruger left them high and dry by leaving mid season
When Chilli was replaced their line outs fell apart, I can’t understand this ” we must use every player on the bench” mentality
Surely if you can play for 60 or 70 minutes, you should be fit enough to last 80?
The last penalty one could see coming from a mile off
Mentioned to my wife they kick for touch, their line out was superior at that stage so they win the ball, start to maul and then the inevitable penalty for collapsing will come
Sometimes the game is so stereotypical ( unless old Deon Fourie is throwing in 🙂 )
Just didn’t expect them to miss the last kick as well
I wonder if Naas will be interested, 1997 was fairly close to when he retired, not sure he would be leaving his SS job for this now.
Regarding Butch, as I said, I’ve always been a fan, I’m just not convinced that it was worth the Sharks’ while to invest in him this year.
He has been injured for 6 months, now he will spend more time on suspension than he has on the field
Lambie is a bit of an enigma
He is one of those guys who doesn’t need to go and play overseas unless he wants to experience another country
Similar to Schalk, their family is loaded, so money is not the main factor to them
He will stay at the Sharks unless someone there really gets under his skin and forces him to go
He wants to play 10 and has said so, but in the back of his mind he must realize that if Goosen wasn’t made of glass he would struggle to keep him out of the Boks.
Also Steyn is the fail safe for HM ( not sure how the Bulls will cope without him next year )
Maybe if your side can play a couple of games with a settled side, he will be back to his own self.
Difficult with all those injuries to settle into any rhythm if the backline changes every week
12 @ nortierd:
Head Butting is a definite ban. If he comes away scot free then something is not right. Steenkamp should pick up two or 3 weeks for that. He and Flip should have been yellow carded and none were. Jaftha was terrible for both sides. Just not sure how the tmo never saw what we saw. Mallett mentioned it straight away in the studio after.
Yes said it was a waste getting Butch as he was injured the whole year. That meant one player had to be over played the whole year which was Lambie, he never missed a game. If Butch was the 2nd fh at Sharks and not injured then he could have played a few games and let Pat rest. Though Pat had a good rest with the Boks….. 🙂 He mostly sat on the bench.
Just hope next year my Sharks and your Stormers for that matter don’t have so many injuries. Buddy this tourney is way, way too long. We need far bigger squads or the whole format needs to be changed. Far too much rugby. We seeing now so many more injuries than we have done before.
Lambie has a contract until 2014 at the Sharks. I doubt he will leave until after the 2015 wc. I think most youngsters like to travel and live in another country when they young. So my thinking is he will be with Sharks until then. Unless of course he does stay.
I wonder who our coach will be? It is not Venter as he wont be at the Sharks full time.
Okay going to eat dinner now. Catch up tomorrow Nortie. I joined your CC and RC bru pool.
What a day…
Regarding the Cheetahs bye weekend coming now… do not think it will hinder them, the passion and guts will be there in spades in the play-off game for them. In effect the top 2 sides on the Log will also have Quasi-bye weekend’s when the 4th to 6th sides play the play-off round, with them sitting out until the semi-weekend.
I do not think the Cheetahs will be rusty, because this week and next week they will be all too aware that the previous bye weekend and the June break did them no favours, so the slight changes they will make to keep sharp and fresh and focussed might even be a blessing in disguise.
This coming Saturday will be hard for the Bulls, they had a hard game last Saturday with bodies taking quite a pounding, just to prepare for a massive bruiser against the Stormers… but heck if you want a chance at the overall title, you must be able to take all comers…
Francois Venter will most likely slot in at No 12 against the Stormers in place of Jan Serfontein, which is not too bad…
Wilhelm Steenkamp’s hearing tomorrow is massively important though, with Grant Hattingh already covering at No 5 for Juandré Kruger who’s left for France already, and the bulls need someone with huge experience on the bench as lock.
Zane Kirchner really did not play well on Saturday and I hope he finds some of his form again against the Stormers. Akona Ndungane has been such a stalwart for the Bulls for a decade, but it looks like he is well past his best too.
Francois Hougaard took quite a bump to his hand, BonzaiGBS took a close-up picture of the swolen hand… looks like he is OK though… I would start with Jano Vermaak though.
Regarding Lambie’s & Riaan Viljoen’s kicking woes… well they must just practice that right out of memory, it will come right.
Butch James showed an old hand and some astute controlling from No 10… but a leopard never changes his spots… and a VUILGAT BRAIN-FART he will stay and be remembered as.
The ref was nothing but a 16th Shark on the field on Saturday, he was abysmal… and it was evident, blatant and terrible. He is blinder and closer to being a cheat than Bryce Lawrence ever was… one could read his script from a mile off, his officiating at the breakdowns to favour one way was clear for all to see, amplified by the field ears I wore and I could hear every word he said and Dewald Potgieter’s words to him were blatantly disregarded, shunned and ignored.
I never complain about referees, because I believe that one wins despite a bad ref… but this Saturday was just too much, I wanted to pummell the little dweeb.. especially when he called advantage over and then said “My Bad” and still went back to the Sharks penalty. Anybody who is happy with his performance also needs a freegin PK of note!
I spoke to Dewald Potgieter on the quiet one side after the Presser on Saturday night whilst he was waiting for Frans Ludeke who was surrounded by about 5 journos… got a bit of further insight into how he and all the Bulls saw Jaftha’s officiating… I will not repeat it here, suffice to say that I share and understand the sentiment expressed.
The Bulls showed some huge cahoonas to come back at the Sharks after falling behind… and that’s what champion teams are made of!
Hope the Bulls can finish in No 1 spot, so that they can have a week to recuperate after these 2 monsterous derbies and get rid of the bumps and bruises… but the Stormers (like the Sharks) always bring out their absolute best game against the Bulls, so I have no illusion that the game at Newlands will be hard and taxing!
Gooooooooo Bulls!
@ Puma:
Agree with most in your post #3
i enjoyed this conversation, this is what makes RT the best. Some provincial bias but all real Rugby talk. Nortier you are a great level headed person, everything you said here makes sense. Great to have you HERE
Oh, and another thing… the Sharks did not even bother to pitch up for the after match Presser on Saturday night… like Loosehad would say… DIK SWAK!
@ grootblousmile:
Eish ou maat dit gaan seker rof daar by jou, die aand na so n dag is vir my gewoonlik erg, die wete dat die een wat nie meer daar is nie…… Sterkte weereens, hou haar vas en bemoedig haar al is die seer ook jou seer.
17 @ superBul:
Ek kan my vrou nie eers styf vashou vanaand nie, sy slaap vanaand daar by haar ma…
Ja, dis maar rof hier, maar ons is OK!
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