The Vodacom Bulls are back to winning ways and captain Ruan Nortje is fired up to roast the Exeter Chiefs in the highveld heat on Saturday.
The Bulls last week recovered from a poor run of results in December, absorbing the late withdrawal of Jake White to claim a bonus-point victory over Dragons in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship.
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For captain Ruan Nortje, the result was a vital one, especially as it warmed up the Bulls up for what will be a tricky schedule that includes back-to-back Champions Cup matches against Exeter and Lyon.
“That game was massive for us,” Nortje told the media on Tuesday. “We were under a lot of pressure, me personally, as well as the team and the management. We are very happy with the character that we showed.
“It wasn’t perfect, but we were much better in that game, especially when it came to our discipline. That was a massive point for us. People who weren’t there won’t understand, but the wind made it very cagey. It was very tough conditions, especially in the first half when we were playing against the wind.
“It was massive for our confidence,” Nortje added. “We know how important that is when it comes to rugby. When you lose two or three in a row, then it feels like you are the worst team in the world. But an away win, especially, brings in so much confidence. We know how tough it is to win away from home.
“We were very happy with Friday’s win, especially taking us into these next three weeks. It’s going to be very tough for us. So that win was important to reassure the guys that they are good enough to be here.”
Although the Bulls are back on the winning path, Nortje says there is still plenty for him and his teammates to work on this week, especially in terms of the mistakes that they made in Newport.
“I wouldn’t put the error rate against Dragons on any outside factors like travel. It still wasn’t one of our best performances. We left a lot of opportunities out there that could have led to tries. When we got penalties, we gave the ball back to them and that put us under pressure, instead of keeping them in their half. It’s a lot of small stuff like handling errors and turnovers. The ball was very slippery, but that’s no excuse.
“There’s a bit more focus going into Saturday to keep hold of the ball.”
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Nortje said that the Bulls have done their homework on Exeter and are expecting the Chiefs to try and wear them down through multiple phases on Saturday.
“Exeter were the 2020 champions of both the Premiership and Champions Cup. We know what’s coming. It’s a world-class team. They want to outwork you, go through phase after phase and take you on up front. In all facets of the game, they want to kill you.
“So for us, it’s important to maintain our focus and keep the penalty count as low as possible. It’s going to be a physical battle, so we will have to step up in all departments.”
The forecast for Saturday’s match is that the game will be played in temperatures of around 26 degrees, which along with altitude could aid the Bulls in getting a vital win.
“Pretoria weather is a bit different from Europe,” Nortje said with a smile. “It’s going to be quite hot and a good day for rugby. Hopefully, we can get good continuity between backs and forwards and get some good running rugby in on Saturday.”
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