Bulls Focus on Zebre as Season Reaches Its Crunch Point | Team Announcement | URC

Welcome to the first time of the Span So, first of all, what you see for the Span First of all, what you see is the Span But, you see, it's a good Span It's a very experienced Span It's not as a couple of of of of of of of of you to start the time to get you back Yeah, we've thought that Ernst verdien hierdie ouders, wat heel tyd op die bank opkom en verskil maak. Ons geef hulle, je weet het, tyd, kry bieke game time, waar hulle begin. Sit hulle in die scenario, waar hulle begin. Je weet nooit, is hier ergens iemand nodig het nie. So, ons het letterlijk, ons bank eindelijk maar net opgesit, en ons ouders, wat gewoon ek begin, kom van die bank af.

Die ena se ding is, Kurt Lee's scenario, is nou op ons afgedoong, met die besering van David af. David Kruel, so the reality is we will just look at our 15 what we have we have to do for Devon and then we will the last time more 10 games so we will just look as we are in such a scenario we will go 15 games Okay, Jean-Drey, you have to do this and then Cameron on 8 to find his feet Yes, we feel Cameron will be playing now my ears on game 5 for that he's back so he he's got better Marcel, we know that we are in a good form and then we have to decide to know how he's going to play and Bielo does for us a good job from the bank and I give him a genre that's more than 80 minutes and he's got the ability to come to 80 minutes so that gives us the option he can 6-8 and Bielo can 8-7 a game. And, yeah, we just felt that it was a good balance. I know there is no tradition, but I think that it is a good balance. Okay, a bit more, a different question, but Cameron was injured before you started taking out and he came back into the Bulls, how is he adjusting to your style of play now, the new kind of thing?

of thing no i think he's done well in you know cameron is a is a very intense player like he he does so much homework he does so much you know individual uh stuff he's he's always you know hard on on his detail and getting his details so he was one of the first players who will who sat with neil and you know understand what his role is and you know and but ultimately I think the best for him is to get minutes under the belt. But from a playing perspective, he's slotted in easily because he's so good athlete. And he's so good in putting in the hard work, you know, learning and understanding his role. And obviously, a number eight has got a big role in our system. So he's settled in nicely.

Number five, J.F. I mean, that's obviously for the future, Rion now leaving. J.F.

saying no to the Stormers. Thank you. Thank you very much. And that's part of that. Yeah, again, you know, I must make it clear that we're not underestimating Zebre.

This team, like I said, it's all the guys that was on the bench that we give a starting, getting minutes into them. We are young. Marco has played 25, 30, 35, 20, you know, somewhere you need to get them ready. also to play longer if you need them going forward. So we got a lot of respect for Zebri and what they can bring.

And again, if you analyze them, they're just unlucky sometimes, small margins. But Ruan felt his hamstring in Scarlets. And then obviously last week we were off. And then on Monday, there was just that subtle little symptom still. Nothing that probably if we had to blame, we could have played him.

and especially now by Friday the symptom just really has gone and he testing well and everything but we just felt you know again this is a squad effort. If we don't put trust in J.F. now, when will we put trust in him? So, why risk a player if there's a little bit of doubt?

So, J.F., we've got a lot of faith and he's going to run the lineups for us and get his playing opportunity and then next week we know there's no questions around Ruan. He'll be ready by Monday fully ready and that makes it just easier. And then you're probably going to be keeping a close eye what's happening in Durban.

And Bennington surprised Leinster the other day. They're also not looking forward to that, Kay. Yeah, again, you know, we have to obviously overcome tomorrow first. That's the priority to keep ourselves in the run for playoffs and where we're going to finish and how we're going to finish. That's out of our hands.

but it starts tomorrow. But then if you do look a little bit ahead, Benetton, again, you know, we had a little bit of a look of them already, you know, trying to get ahead for next week's planning. But, you know, quality, quality side. Play a very good brand of rugby. They push every team to the limit.

And if they, you know, if they don't beat, it's also just small margins. They've got, you know, a lot of Italian international players in their squad and just a a nuggety quality team. So this is definitely not, you know, as easy as people perceive out there, are you playing two sides that's at the bottom? That's definitely not the case. We will have to play good enough team.

I feel like you have been in two or three weeks that we have been sitting here and asked about the political and the strengthening that is not good. Are you in a position where you have two strong people who are very much under the top 4. You have been very happy with your session that you have been in the beginning of the year. No, I'm not sure if it's all. You know, everything is a pleasure.

You know, the players are happy and old. And Neil's work and all the people around us, the medies and the rest of the coaches, all the people are happy and happy to support. And we are grateful that we can make the ship in a way, but it will be much better as we will in the next two weeks a cup and good result can get, then it will feel that people will be very in the season, because I think, there was always from the beginning a expectation that they don't have to play, it is just to understand what they have to get, it is always so easy, as you look at, I feel like I feel like a fiscal is, for example, when we talked to the time with our coaches, I could see in Dwayne Biel's his face, it is, it is a game, that they lost my point of two. So he said, that they said, that they said, that they said, when you do that, then it's your season all. So, we were also in the middle of the year and we had this experience to be able to get out of the season and to be able to let it look.

We had to be able to get out of the season. I can say, that it was good. But, the reality is, that we are better off as we were. And, that's the way to the players, and the players, that Ron and Marcel, and we have so many young people in the span that have been positive and helped. You know, we are so very thankful that we could do that.

If I may ask a question, tomorrow Ambrose has a chance to support you for scrum art and period, how influential and important has he been to your course? No, I've been massive. You know, obviously, I've known him from school, as he played with my son, and he was outstanding at school, and then he obviously took it forward as a professional player. And since I joined you know he a very quiet person but he an exceptional nine you know he got all the abilities For me personally you know he got And probably the one outstanding factor is his support and his speed. And the fact that he's in so good form for us, you know, that L, because a lot of the games was influenced with his play.

So for that achievement to achieve that to pass Eurus is quite a big achievement. You know, it means you have to be consistently playing well to be picked. And of course Eurus was obviously the world's best line and there was no doubt that he would have been picked in any team. So for Emros to challenge that record is massive to show that a lot of people before me and myself sees those qualities in them. So that's a massive achievement.

Thanks guys. As I can say, August, with the best-seerers under the box-kamp-skakels, or any communication from SARU or Rassi's kante was with Emros? I think they had contact with them. Will you be a phrase? and he will not give the racket and he will not give the racket there was a camp of all the but they had already contact with him and he had so I am sure of him he had with him talked about the good things and this is good and for us it is beginning to look but nothing is to be sure I think Grant Williams is a path, very right and I don't know about the rest of it.

They will choose their squad so that they will do well. But they can't hold to Embrose as they play and the rest is lost here. Just with the news of Jan Serventijn calling it quits, 12 is becoming a bit of an issue statement on the bench now. 12 is here 13, what's the planning for 12? At this current season, we're obviously a bit thin now.

Again, hopefully Harold will get through all the games and he's in good form. But then Stedman has luckily played a bit of 12 and played well there. So he'll give us an option there. And then we still believe that Andre can also play 12 if we need to. And then we'll see.

We've got some good young talent coming through our under 20s and under 23s. Pierre van der Kerk is still there. Peter van der Merwe and Christian Foster is still there. So that's all guys who either played ESSA under 20 or played a Curry Cup. And guys that we do believe got good futures.

We've seen now of the Sharks if we have to go that route we will have to go. But David is obviously a loss for us and then Jan, that's, first of all, he would have played if he was fit, but he's injured now, and that's the reason why he's also not available. But yeah, hopefully, like I said, hopefully things will work in our way that we can finish with the team that we got. Will he give those young guys a shot, even at the late stage of the season? I don't think we'll have a choice.

Again, Stravino is almost fully fit, probably a week, at most two weeks away. I think he's got the ability to play 12 with his power running. So we'll see. This is now, you know, we're talking about worst-case scenario and we're thinking a bit out of the box now. But we'll see when we're there.

You know, I think even a guy like Kanan can play 12 just purely because of his size and his understanding, like, the game. But again, you know, now we talk like a rapid-talk. It's a player. I don't know if you just do the job. I going to ask about the team which is probably going to ask you to repeat yourself So just the loose tree of how much of that was it guys that can fetch and carry all three of them.

How much of it was necessity and how much of it was our position? No it was purely just the way we thought you know they won deserve opportunity and then who can bring the most impact from the bench. And then obviously it's a combination we would like to see. See how it goes. You know, each guy's got his different strengths.

Like I think we all see each other in Rudolph as a guy that's hard on the ball, but he's the guy that probably gets the most line breaks as well with his carries. And then Cameron has got the ability as well to carry well and to steal the ball. And then Marcel is your out-and-out feature and also, you know, a big carrier for us. So we just looked at availability and then who will, how do we think the game will go and then obviously who can bring what. So this is a bit of a new combination for us, but it's one that we're exciting to see how they play.

Just from a psychological perspective, Without jinxing you guys, obviously, I think us in the media kind of assume that the next two games are taken care of, which obviously all of us know better than to think. But when you do make it into the last eight, how do you feel the other teams are going to feel about it? Because I think it might have been sort of comforting for them when you guys were losing seven games in a row think we don't have to worry about the Bulls in the top eight. You now kind of lurk as the one team that nobody wants to play against and obviously it probably takes off a little bit of pressure from last year where you guys went all the way to the final and so on. How do you guys sort of, from a psychological perspective, how do you look at yourselves because I think the opposition aren't going to be?

Simo, I must be honest with you, I don't say this because it's the easy answer but I say it with all respect, I just don't look at the lock and I just don't think beyond what can and if. I'm still under pressure. That's the reality. Until we haven't get over this next game and then obviously we'll put our focus on Benetton, the judgment will be out because obviously that's the reality. The team was at a high and they're not there yet.

So So I haven't thought about, you know, where we sit and how teams perceive us. One thing I've said numerous times when we were overseas and we did the media is I do believe if we can get a foot in the playoffs, we can beat any team. who that, you know, it's not going to be easy, but I do believe we can, and that's probably the thing that the other sides will worry about. Not to say that, oh, I'm saying it, but just the fact that I think we got the quality. It's just we made it quite difficult for ourselves not to already be sure that we're in the playoffs, and that's why for us to focus on Zebrey first and then obviously Benetton is probably the most important thing we can do.

And then, you know, anything can happen after that. We don't know who we're going to play. And that top eight is, just looking at the lock, is so bunched. It means that any team can beat any team. And that's the reality.

So, you know, even though we believe we can win any team, that team can beat us as well. You know, so there's no guarantees.

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