Bulls determined to paint the town red

Blue Bulls coach Frans Ludeke. Picture Credit: Gallo Images
Blue Bulls coach Frans Ludeke. Picture Credit: Gallo Images

It is all about getting back on the winning trail for the Bulls when they take on the Queensland Reds in a Super Rugby clash at Loftus Versfeld tomorrow (7.10pm kickoff).

The Bulls want to make a quick about-turn after last week's defeat against the Lions ended a run of four consecutive victories.

They take on the beleaguered Australian side, and despite the Reds' poor run of form so far in the season, the side from Pretoria will leave nothing to chance.

Coach Frans Ludeke made only two changes to the starting line-up for the weekend's match - both in the forwards.

Loose-forward Arno Botha, the injury-prone 23-year-old who has made a full recovery from his latest ailment, a hamstring strain, will be getting a starting berth at flank.

He takes the place of teenager Hanro Liebenberg in the No7 jersey, as the 19-year-old drops down to the bench.

"It's great to have Arno back. Liebenberg, on the bench, will be our impact player," coach Ludeke said yesterday. "Arno trained well from last week when he came back, so we really think he's ready for the opportunity."

The other change will see hooker Adriaan Strauss being rested and Callie Visagie making his first start of the season in the front row.

Strauss joins pivot Handre Pollard and centre Jan Serfontein on the list of Springboks the Bulls will be resting this weekend. This will be in keeping with the agreement with the SA Rugby Union to manage the playing time of Bok-contracted players.

"We have confidence in the team we have picked. We lost against the Lions last week, and we have put that behind us," Ludeke said.

"We've looked at a few things, like right at the end, on how to manage that. We want to finish strong, you know. We had a good week of preparations."

The Bulls will also be pleased with the return of experienced lock Flip van der Merwe, who captained the Super Rugby side last year.

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