The front-running Northern Bulls, buoyed by a successful start to their pivotal five-match Australasian leg, have New Zealand’s Otago Highlanders in their sights in this weekend’s Super 14 round.
The unbeaten Bulls, who defeated the Wellington Hurricanes 19-14 to launch their demanding tour last week, hold a one-point advantage over fellow South Africans the Coastal Sharks after six rounds of the southern hemisphere series.
The Highlanders will be hosting the Bulls, champions two years ago, not at their Dunedin home ground but at Palmerston North stadium on Saturday, in the hopes of attracting a bigger crowd. They have not beaten the Bulls since 2005.
Bulls captain Victor Matfield has not fully recovered from a shoulder injury and will miss the game, allowing Danie Rossouw to start at lock again amid three changes to the side that beat the Hurricanes.
Dewald Potgieter comes in for suspended flank Deon Stegmann, Jaco Pretorius replaces JP Nel at centre and Rayno Gerber will prop at tight head in place of Werner Kruger.
”We are looking forward to the rest of the tour now. We are very positive and we can’t wait for Saturday,” Bulls manager Wynie Strydom said. ”It’s always nice to start a tour with a win.”
The Sharks are back home after two wins from their four-match Australasian tour. They will tackle Australia’s ACT Brumbies in Durban on Saturday.
The Sharks will start favourites against the two-time Super rugby champions, boasting a formidable home record of 19 wins from 22 games since 2006 — and seven in a row since the 2007 final against the Bulls.
But the Brumbies will have memories of their against-the-odds 21-10 win two years ago in Durban, when the Canberra team beat a Sharks outfit that had won its previous nine in a row at home.
”The boys are definitely looking forward to playing at home,” Sharks coach John Plumtree said. ”Already the energy levels are up, which helps because we’ve had a few physical games and a long trip home as well.”
Wallabies captain Stirling Mortlock has been named in the Brumbies’ side after suffering a bruised leg during last weekend’s 25-17 loss to the Golden Lions, while winger Clyde Rathbone is promoted from the bench.
The NSW Waratahs, who have dropped to third after two losses, face a difficult assignment against the fifth-placed Blues in Auckland on Friday, with out-of-form flyhalf Kurtley Beale staying at home with tonsillitis. The Waratahs, who will pin their hopes on Daniel Halangahu to spark their backline, have never won in six attempts at Eden Park.
The fourth-placed Waikato Chiefs, fresh from their 63-34 thumping of the Blues, head to Brisbane on Saturday to take on the Queensland Reds.
Wallabies lock James Horwill, who hasn’t played since the end of last year’s Tri-Nations due to a foot injury, makes his return to the Reds as one of four changes to the squad, which upset the Sharks 25-13 at home a fortnight ago.
Elsewhere on Saturday, the sixth-placed Hurricanes begin their South African tour against the Lions while the seven-time champion Canterbury Crusaders have home advantage against the Cape Town Stormers.
Bottom team Central Cheetahs of South Africa and Australia’s Western Force have the weekend off. — Sapa-AFP