Topping the ruck tussle
7 Apr 2009
Bulls attack coach Pieter Rossouw says they will have to be clinical at the breakdown if they hope to breach the tournament’s best defence.
After hammering the Reds and Blues in the opening rounds, the Bulls have found it increasingly hard to cross the whitewash. However, they’ll need to add to their five tries on tour en route to a win if they hope to stay on course for a play-off spot.
On Saturday the Bulls face the Waratahs, who have conceded just 13 tries in eight matches. The Sydney franchise were superb at killing the Stormers’ attacking flow by dominating the collisions and subsequently the breakdown last week, and the the Bulls are acutely aware that cracking that granitic defensive wall begins with prospering at ruck time.
‘The biggest contributing factor to their excellent defensive record is the way they contest the ball on the ground, and that slows down the opposition ball which gives them time to make sure their defensive lines are always in order. That makes it harder to break the line because most of the time you are on the end of a double hit form the defenders,’ Rossouw told keo.co.za.
‘The important thing is to make sure that we get quick ball and ensure that our cleaning out at the breakdown is executed correctly. Once you get in behind them and over the advantage line that becomes easier.’
The Bulls have crafted a number of scoring opportunities over the last fortnight but have failed to capitalise on the majority of those. That has been the difference between victory and defeat, and if they don’t improve in this regard it could be the difference between a successful tour and a nightmare one.
‘You are not always going to score from every opportunity you create, so the idea is to try create as many opportunities as you can. We are working on making sure that we are a bit more patient on attack because I think sometimes we tend to rush things a bit too much,’ Rossouw said.
‘We made a big step up against the Crusaders from the Highlanders game. It was disappointing not to have come away with the win, but in the end we probably made too many errors which cost us the game.’
The Tahs have hardly prospered in the try scoring stakes either, banking 18 in their eight matches. This has been directly as a result of their rigidly structured approach, and Rossouw predicted they wouldn’t veer from that approach on Saturday, but did acknowledge their unpredictability.
‘I think they are quite a conservative team and their first phase is generally very good and they probably have the strongest scrum in the competition,’ he noted.
‘Their tactical kicking is very good and they try to play as much of the game in the opposition half, but they are not scared to give it a go out wide on a couple of occasions so it is something you have to be alert to.’
The Bulls are likely to name a similar run-on XV to the one that went down in Christchurch, with the only changes expected in the front row where Derick Kuun could start ahead of Chiliboy Ralepelle. There continues to be serious concern around the fitness of fullback Zane Kirchner, who injured a bottock muscle against the Crusaders.
Bryan Habana will fill the void at fullback if Kirchner fails to recover, and Rossouw was confident Habana has the necessary skill set to thrive.
‘He certainly brings another dimension to our play if you just look at the number of counter-attacks he started against the Crusaders,’ he said.
‘I don’t have a problem with his kicking game and neither am I concerned about his ability under the high ball,’ he added when probed on these facets of Habana’s play.
‘Wings get more high balls than fullbacks and it has always been one of his strengths. He was very good again on Saturday [against the Crusaders] under the high ball, so I don’t think his height is a problem at all.’
By Ryan Vrede
37 Comments
7 Apr 2009, 06:09 am
Attacker Dragons
7 Apr 2009, 06:21 am
I’d say bring on Kuun, lots of line outs lost due to poor line out throws. The line out is one of the best attacking platforms. I can’t remember how many skew throw in’s there were but it wasn’t pretty. When Kuun came on he looked impressive making the yards and breaking a few tackles.
7 Apr 2009, 06:31 am
“Clinical” is the latest bit of hackneyed cliched jargon.
Like “taking lots of positives” and “dig deep”.
7 Apr 2009, 08:07 am
Pieter, come back to Province. Please, please, please.
7 Apr 2009, 08:08 am
What’s the value of a Keo$? Is it like a Zim dollar?
7 Apr 2009, 08:09 am
And do you get $5 every time you post, no matter how short, irrelevant or idiotic the post is?
7 Apr 2009, 08:09 am
And what happens if you spread one post over, say, three posts? Or four?
7 Apr 2009, 08:10 am
Do you then get 20 Zim dollars instead of just 5?
7 Apr 2009, 08:10 am
Yep, that seems to be the case.
7 Apr 2009, 08:22 am
#9 Windhoek.Lager:
if a Keo dollar is like a Zim dollar….one needs to ask the question,
can you starve and catch cholera online?
viva zanu?….or is that zapu?
7 Apr 2009, 08:23 am
anyway…Bulls, just win anyway,anyhow….3-0 will do.
7 Apr 2009, 08:37 am
bulls need this win if we want a home semi.. its gonna be the first bulls game that sky will be showing live here in london, so very excited, ive had to settle for highlights only.. come on bulle make me proud!
7 Apr 2009, 08:55 am
#12 ray-bulls_fan: The first and ONLY Bulls game that Sky are deigning to show for the entire pool stage.
The Reds and the Waratahs have 7 each, and have the most.
What did the Bulls do wrong?
7 Apr 2009, 08:58 am
Sky Sports’ coverage of the S14 this year has been shockingly poor.
7 Apr 2009, 09:18 am
I love the idea of Bryan Habana at fullback. Now he’ll be able to apply his speed and agility on both sides of the field, get ball up the field quicker and keep the game flowing more, provided he doesn’t kick every time the ball touches his hands.
7 Apr 2009, 09:56 am
Rugby coverage has been terrible in Brisbane.
7 Apr 2009, 10:07 am
#3 TheTackler: Tackler, I see you have been “putting up your hand” in the weekly prediction competition. If you “keep your focus” and “take it week by week” the “reults will look after itself” and you “might just go all the way”
7 Apr 2009, 10:27 am
#8 Windhoek.Lager:
But how do I spend my hard earned cash?
7 Apr 2009, 10:35 am
We won’t make the play offs.I was saying this before the S14 started and even while we were on the winning streak. Two things must happen at the Bulls.
1.Ludekak must f@#k off NOW. We must get a new coach in that can start rebuilding the Blue Empire BEFORE the S14 ends,so that he has enough time to get the work done.
2.We need a hooker.We don’t have one at present.Maybe Strauss can come back from the Cheetahs.
These two things must happen,or we will never see another semi again.
7 Apr 2009, 10:47 am
#13 Spooner:
its because the reds and tahs home games fit nicely into sky’s saturday morning time slot. this has always been the case.
7 Apr 2009, 11:21 am
Bulls will win this game, The Tahs dont play as helter skelter as they used to and have started to take the bulls approach which is a bit more structured. So dont think the Tahs will beat the Bulls at their own game. Specialy since they know they need a win on tour.
7 Apr 2009, 11:55 am
#20 munkiboi: I understand the logic behind why the Aus teams get more games shown live on Sky – Saturday morning time slots.
But not showing games out of SA (usually kickoff is 1pm, 2pm, 3pm, 4pm in the UK depending on daylight saving) does not wash when they show carp fishing, sailing highlights, European Tour Golf out of Timbuctoo, darts re-runs, snooker, Gilette World Sport Special, and ‘Extreme’ Sports highlights at the same time.
Surely there is more demand in the UK for live S14 rugby than any of the above non live ‘sports’.
7 Apr 2009, 12:02 pm
#22 Spooner: Lepel, face it… Sky does not like SA…. hehehe
7 Apr 2009, 12:30 pm
Bulls need to get idiot Danie Rossouw out of their backline. Can’t pass, can’t think and dies with ball in hand. A box of immodium gives more fluidity than Danie Rossouw in the backline. Even flat on his back he manages to f… up possession. I don’t know what thoughts do in the wide open spaces between his ears. He cost Bulls the game. The Ludick replaces the one flank that is working, needs to play wing outside Danie on bonus system to figure out error of his ways.
Stegmann is sorely missed. Bulls need to move Kuhn to flank, keep Chillie at hooker and Preorius fullback. Positionally Brian was as accurate as Robert Macbirde trying to aim a car down a highway after 2 in the morning. Danie get place on the swings at the parking lot. Bully boy tactics without brains might work there (but I believe some five foot two 40kg mom will probably bliksem him after outwitting and outpacing him).
7 Apr 2009, 14:03 pm
#18 chch: You and me both, CHCH, you and me both …
(Hey, I just got another 5 bucks for this. Woohoo
7 Apr 2009, 14:04 pm
#17 Beertjie: Woke up to it halfway through! But last year I won not one but TWO packs of Lauren Polo cologne and shower cream!
7 Apr 2009, 14:47 pm
I wonder what to do with my Keo$’s?
7 Apr 2009, 14:59 pm
#27 Chris14: Who cares? Just keep racking ‘em up. Z$5.- per post. Let’s see who’s first to a million…
7 Apr 2009, 15:02 pm
Werner Kruger op vaskop
Kuun op flank
JP op buitesenter
Dan kan die Bulle die ding doen.
Go Bulls !
7 Apr 2009, 15:41 pm
#26 TheTackler: I hope you thanked your yimmelse faater
7 Apr 2009, 16:45 pm
#14 Spooner: i agree man its pathetic, i miss supersport.. they air games here that dont matter, they will show the cheetahs vs highlanders but wont show bulls vs anyone.. finally i get to watch one, ive been to bokbar twice to watch them play, but its such a mission…
7 Apr 2009, 16:48 pm
#19 BlueBlood: im with you on that one, i wish gary botha would come back… our hookers we have at the moment are lightweights, chilliboy is so overrated, i dont understand the big fuss about him.. and kuun is a fetcher flank, he is NOT a hooker..
7 Apr 2009, 17:45 pm
Where is Gary Botha stomping around now?
7 Apr 2009, 18:14 pm
#32 ray-bulls_fan: chilliboy is the bulls version of ashwin willemse
7 Apr 2009, 21:43 pm
#22 Spooner: Does the pubs get the saffa games spooner?
8 Apr 2009, 12:05 pm
#33 Joost_is_Innocent: Rumour has it he’s in America taking banjo and canoe lessons in the Appalachian Mountains — or it is the Ozarks?
8 Apr 2009, 14:55 pm
#36 TheTackler: Who gives a rats *** where he is, good riddance to mediocre rubbish i say
Have your say
You must be logged in to post a comment.