Two captains, surprising omissions in Bulls’ final Super Rugby squad
John Mitchell, head coach of the Bulls, surprised many fans with some selections when he announced his final squad for this year's Super Rugby tournament.
Two captains, the omission of players like centre Dries Swanepoel and highly regarded loose forwards Shaun Adendorff and Jano Venter and the news that Springbok loose forward Jacques Potgieter broke ties with the Bulls were some of the surprising aspects that raised questions after the announcement of the team.
There will certainly also be questions asked about the appointment of loose forward Nic de Jager as co-captain of the group, as in many experts’ books he will not be a certainty for the team on merit.
Mitchell was also questioned about the omission of Springbok scrumhalf Rudy Paige. According to him, it is “time for the younger men to get a chance” and he implied that Paige is too slow behind the scrum to be a factor in SuperRugby.
Mitchell, on Monday named 38 players as well the leadership for the 2018 Super Rugby season. The coach named midfielder Burger Odendaal and De Jager as co-captains. Although former Springbok captain and the man who led the Bulls last season, Adriaan Strauss, is part of the squad, he is not one of the captains.
The squad is made up out of 21 forwards and 17 backs, with 11 of those being Springboks and furthermore includes a host of Junior Springboks. Springbok Sevens forward Tim Agaba has also been included and will join the squad after the Blitzboks return from tournaments in Sydney and Hamilton.
Only a handful of players do not have any Super Rugby experience, among those outside back Divan Rossouw, midfielder JT Jackson, fly half Manie Libbok, scrumhalf Embrose Papier and lock Aston Fortuin.
The Bulls will be involved in two warmup matches this weekend as they take on the Sharks in Polokwane on Saturday at 18:00, and the Lions in Johannesburg earlier at 15:00.
“We have made tremendous progress with our processes over the last couple of months and we will be ready for whatever comes our way during Super Rugby 2018,” said Mitchell
“I don’t want to make any promises on how the team will perform this year, we will be solely focussed on the process. It’s about marginal gains for us, stacking good stuff on good stuff daily as we continue to ensure excellence. It’s not about the end but rather the daily effort combined at the end. Our purpose is to fill Loftus and put smiles on people’s faces. We will be working very hard to achieve that.”
“I am confident that we have worked smartly and laid a solid foundation. This squad will develop and improve and one needs to be realistic about it, but we are all in agreement about the way forward. We will be connected, we want to be respected and not just liked and therefore one of our main focus areas during this process will be to remain honest and never forget to enjoy it and have fun. We want to serve our fans, supporters, shareholders and sponsors – we want to earn back their respect and get the Vodacom Bulls to bind us together as one,” Mitchell concluded.
The Bulls Super Rugby squad is:
Outside Backs: Warrick Gelant, Duncan Matthews, Travis Ismaiel, Jamba Ulengo, Jade Stighling, Divan Rossouw.
Midfielders: Burger Odendaal, JT Jackson, Francois Brummer, Jesse Kriel, Johnny Kotze
Flyhalves: Handre Pollard, Marnitz Boshoff, Manie Libbok
Halfbacks: Ivan van Zyl, Andre Warner, Embrose Papier
Loose Forwards: Roelof Smit, Ruan Steenkamp, Hendre Stassen, Hanro Liebenberg, Jannes Kirsten, Nic de Jager, Tim Agaba.
Locks: Jason Jenkins, Ruben van Heerden, RG Snyman, Lood de Jager, Aston Fortuin.
Props: Pierre Schoeman, Conraad van Vuuren, Frans van Wyk, Matthys Basson, Lizo Gqoboka, Trevor Nyakane.
Hookers: Jaco Visagie, Adriaan Strauss, Edgar Marutlulle
The Bulls confirmed that they have parted ways with loose forward Jacques Potgieter after lengthy discussions on his future. Potgieter has decided not to partake in Super Rugby during 2018, and rather take a sabbatical to focus on his family and spend time with his wife, boy and soon to be born twins.
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