Bulls focus on winning attitude ahead of Cardiff clash

The Bulls say they plan to maintain their positive mental game and skillset strengths as they prepare for a tough clash against Welsh side Cardiff in the United Rugby Championship on Saturday (kick-off 4pm).

The Bulls sit third on the URC log after their 26–19 win against Glasgow two weeks ago. They are in a good position to steal the second spot from the Scottish team (one point ahead), who have tricky final matches away to Benetton and URC leaders Leinster.

But fifth-placed Cardiff aren’t easy opponents, coming from two wins in their last matches against Munster and Ospreys. They have had mixed results so far this season, both at home and away, but are known to be able to turn up on the day.

When the teams clash at Loftus, Cardiff will be eying a difficult but not-impossible move up to fourth place so they can host a quarter-final.

Cardiff come with belief

“I think they are going to come to Loftus with intent. They are going to come with the belief to win,” said Bulls loose forward Marco van Staden. “Cardiff has had a very good season. We are expecting it to be a very big battle. We are not expecting anything less.”

He said the Bulls would carry their confidence and momentum from a stellar month-long tour in Europe where they beat Bayonne, Munster and Glasgow – the latter two being the URC winners over the past two years.

“I think our attitude was very good against Munster and Glasgow. I think we’ll just go with that same attitude in the next two games and the play-offs.

“No matter if the occasion changes, we still have to play the way we train and the way we’ve been playing the whole season…. We want to play without the pressure of the occasion.”

Bulls draw strength from each other, their families

Van Staden in fact missed the Munster game to be with his wife for the birth of their second daughter.

He said being on such a long tour away from one’s family can be difficult, but the Bulls have created a culture where they draw strength from each other and the support of their loved ones.

“A lot of the guys have children and it makes it a bit more difficult but I think is everyone is very happy and looking forward to the next few weeks at Loftus.

“Our motivation is just playing for each other. That is something that doesn’t change week to week. We decided to play for each other, fight for each other, fight for the players not on tour, fighting for the players on tour that are not playing, fighting for our families.

“We as a group have created a bigger ‘why’ for us. That is something we will carry forward for the remainder of this competition.”