'He's got skills that Pollard doesn't have'
SUPER RUGBY SPOTLIGHT: Bulls head coach Pote Human is not too concerned about heading into Saturday’s match against the Jaguares without star flyhalf Handré Pollard.
Pollard will be rested this week due to World Cup protocols, which gives Manie Libbok the chance to take over the No.10 jersey for the Round Eight encounter.
Libbok is still finding his feet at Super Rugby level, but Human is confident in his abilities to handle the pressure against the Jaguares.
“I can remind you about last year’s Currie Cup,” Human told reporters in Pretoria. “During the last game here [against Western Province] I took him off after 15 minutes, but he came back in the semifinal in Cape Town and he had an awesome game.
“I know what he can do, and we are very excited to give him a chance.
“To play in Polly’s shadow is difficult and this is his opportunity to show what he can do.”
He added: “He’s got skills that Pollard does not have. He’s got good feet and he is also a special player.”
Revenge at Loftus
Meanwhile, Bulls No.8 and this weekend’s captain, Duane Vermeulen, said his team will be looking to right the wrongs after their 12-27 second-round defeat to the Jaguares in Buenos Aires.
“We had a difficult time against them in Buenos Aires,” said Vermeulen.
“It is not going to be easy, but I think we had a good week of training – we are focussed on what we need to do and how we need to execute to get one over the Jaguares.”
The Bulls are coming off a hard-fought 19-16 win over the Sharks, but Vermeulen knows that his team will have to adjust their game plan for the Argentinians.
“You can take a bit of that confidence into this game, but it’s a different team and it’s going to be a different game.
“We had to prepare differently this week and start from zero and build it up again. It’s going to be tough,” Vermeulen added.
By Warren Fortune
@FortuneWarren
@rugby365com
