Cornal Hendricks gets his chance for Bulls in Argentina
Except for a forced change due to illness, the Bulls will take the field against the Jaguares in Argentina this coming weekend with the same team that beat the Stormers in round one of the SuperRugby tournament.
Former Springbok wing, Cornal Hendricks, will make a welcome return to Super Rugby on Saturday when the Bulls take on the Jaquares in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Hendricks will replace Johnny Kotze, who will be out of action for at least two weeks due to illness. His inclusion is the only change to the side that secured a convincing 40-3 win over the Stormers.
The 30-year old winger last played in the tournament in 2015, representing the Cheetahs, before stepping out of the game for a couple of seasons. Good performances in recent warm-up matches convinced Bulls Head Coach, Pote Human, that the former test star is ready for the big stage again.
“With Johnny unfortunately ruled out due to illness, I had little hesitation in bringing Cornal into the team. He is a class act and has done very well in the matches he has played for us during the warm-up stages of the season. Travelling to Argentina will not be the easiest trip, but someone like Cornal had to overcome much worse than time zones and rowdy venues. His return to the game continues to inspire and we will feed off the positive energy coming from him for sure,” Human said.
The coach also added Andre Warner and Johan Grobbelaar to the travelling squad to provide cover at scrumhalf and hooker during the trip respectively.
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“We had a good start, no doubt. Luckily everyone realises that we need to start all over again this week. The Jaquares will not be happy after losing at home last weekend and will be determined to get their first win. We need to be accurate and focussed. If we are, we will be able to put pressure on them,” Human said.
Captain Lood de Jager said momentum and self-belief will aid their effort.
“We played like we trained and executed our game plan. The fact that it brought the right result was a boost for us. If we keep on doing the important things right, we can be a hard team to beat, we saw that last weekend. So, we know what to do when we go to Argentina,” De Jager concluded.
The Bulls’ inspiring captain also struggled with the flu after the weekend, but is expected to be ready by Saturday to take on the Jaguares.
The squad to travel to Buenos Aires for the clash against the Jaquares is: Warrick Gelant, Cornal Hendricks, Jesse Kriel, Burger Odendaal, Rosko Specman, Handré Pollard, Embrose Papier, Duane Vermeulen, Hanro Liebenberg, Ruan Steenkamp, Lood de Jager (c), Jason Jenkins, Trevor Nyakane, Schalk Brits and Lizo Gqoboka. Replacements: Corniel Els, Simphiwe Matanzima, Dayan van der Westhuizen, Eli Snyman, Thembelani Bholi, Ivan van Zyl, Manie Libbok, Dylan Sage, with travelling cover: Andre Warner and Johan Grobbelaar.
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