VIDEO: Glasgow gearing for 'killer' Bulls

INTERVIEW: Josh McKay has been playing against South African teams for close to a decade, so he knows what to expect when Glasgow Warriors run out at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.

The Scottish outfit travels to Pretoria to face the Bulls in the United Rugby Championship Final on Saturday – both teams having overcome fancied Irish provinces in the semifinals last week.

The 26-year-old New Zealand-born utility back said they took note that South African teams can lift their game in play-off matches – as the Springboks did in the World Cup last year.

“You saw how good they were against Leinster last week,” he said of the Bulls’ impressive 25-20 win over the powerhouse Irish province.

“They [Leinster] are a world-class outfit.”

The former Christchurch Boys’ High scholar player said they must be mentally and physically ready for the onslaught they will face at Loftus.

“We have to keep on building from what we did in Stormers [a 27-10 quarterfinal win] and Munster [a 17-10 semifinal victory] games.

“We are well prepared and well know what the challenge is that Bulls will bring at Loftus,” he told @rugby365com in the build-up to Saturday’s Final.

(WATCH as New Zealander Josh McKay chats to @king365ed about the URC Final between the Glasgow Warriors and their hosts, the Bulls….)

Despite several South African, New Zealand and Australian names on the playing roster – like Oliver Kebble, Kyle Steyn, Sione Tuipulotu and McKay – their Springbok and coach Franco Smith has the most insight into the Bulls set-up.

Smith’s regimented approach to the game will be a major asset when the pressure is on.

“You always have some good structure to fall back on when the game gets a bit free-flowing.

“We’ll be able to pull it back to our structures and how we want to play the game.”

He added that despite the altitude factor, they will not slow the game down and turn it into a stop-start affair to preserve energy.

“We will do what we can do to be in every moment and give ourselves a chance at the end of the game,” he said.

He said it was “absolutely awesome” to still travel to South Africa and play in finals – having previously played for the Highlanders and Crusaders, before his move to the Warriors in 2021.

Speaking about their last visit to Fort Loftus – a 34-40 loss last month – he said they had some ‘ peaks and troughs’.

Coming back from trailing 10-37, they scored three tries in the final quarter to leave Pretoria with two valuable bonus points.

McKay said they can take heart from how they performed in the last quarter, despite the altitude factor.

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