Calm Joubert keeping a lid on things
A quick glance at the latest ‘You be the Ref’ poll on varsitycup.co.za shows that 52% of the readers feel that FNB Pukke will walk away with the FNB Varsity Cup presented by Steinhoff International title this year.
It is indeed a testament to how highly regarded the Men from Potchefstroom have become in recent weeks…
But what has been so remarkable about this team has been the low-key way in which they have handled the hype. That would probably have something to do with the fact that Maties were the only team to have significantly bloodied their noses during this year’s campaign (31-10).
A long time, however, has passed since Round Four and Pukke have seemingly become more accomplished and strong since then; yet, typically, coach Rudy Joubert remains vigilant.
“We’re actually very relieved to be in the final,” a calm Joubert told varistycup.co.za. “It was indeed a tough match against the Ikeys (in the semifinals).”
The Pukke mentor admitted that the Week Four loss to the Maties would be on the periphery of his charges’ minds, even if the defending champions would “unsurprisingly look to employ those tactics again”.
He added: “I’m pretty sure that they (Maties) would like to adopt an expansive approach. That will necessitate that we keep our mistakes to an absolute minimum and don’t give them any quality first-phase possession.”
It is certainly tempting to think that this will be the case on Monday evening, but as Joubert very rightly points out, “This is a final. It’s difficult to make such assumptions because you don’t quite know what risks the teams will be willing to take”.
Understandably – since the policy worked on Monday against UCT, when Tuks won 19-17 – Joubert remained tight-lipped about the Potchefstromers’ gameplan ahead of the final.
However, judging on the previous notion, it would seem that Pukke will in all probability employ the same approach as was the case against the Ikey Tigers, where solid defence, strong scrummaging and capitalising on mistakes are the focus. In finals rugby, that is usually a very good option – even though Pukke are playing away.
According to Joubert, however, playing away from home for the third time running was not going to influence the psyche of the team.
“Like I’ve said before we are a very adept at adapting to different conditions,” said the Pukke mentor.
“The Cape feels a bit like a second home at the moment and one has to remember that we are quite used to the Danie Craven Stadium nowadays,” he explained.
Pukke have indeed tasted success numerous times in Stellenbosch. They won the 2006 and 2008 National Club Championships on that very ground; with psychological advantage seemingly a non-issue, it becomes utterly taxing to call a winner.
Stellenbosch will definitely be the place to be, whether on location or on television.
Will it be the Maties who defend their title or the lurking, ever-present darkhorses Pukke nicking the silverware? Kick-off at Danie Craven Stadium on March 30 is at 6.45pm and the match will be televised live on SuperSport One.
By Heinz Schenk
