Bulls assistant coach Chris Rossouw has stressed that the Lions are an exceptional team ahead of their Jukskei derby match in the United Rugby Championship (URC) on Saturday at Loftus Versfeld (4.45pm).
The Lions have not won against SA franchises since December 2021 when they defeated the Stormers. The indications are that they will be floored by the Bulls this weekend.
The Pretoria-based side is looking to return to winning ways after they lost 23-19 to Stormers at home in their last game.
The Bulls returned to camp this week, and the motivation to get a win over their Gauteng rivals is high but Rossouw has warned his troops to not let their guard down when they take on Ivan van Rooyen's team.
“We need a win to get some momentum," said Rossouw to the media yesterday.
“The Lions have been under a pump for a long time, they are an exceptional team, and they showed it on the weekend (when they beat Glasgow Warriors). For us, whenever we play the Lions we understand how important that game is.
“Playing a South African team is always extra motivation, we need to know how important this game is in terms of points. We need to focus on the process, it’s easy to panic, and the players get a lot of confidence when we stick to the process and systems,” he said.
The Bulls are left with four matches in the round-robin stages of the URC; they are in sixth place on the table with 41 points and look set to make the knockout stages.
Before shifting their attention to the playoffs, Rossouw said they needed to use their final stretch in the regular season to polish their conversion rate and set-pieces.
“We want to win, that is a box we want to tick, to get that win we need to understand that we need to convert when it matters. We had a few opportunities against the Stormers when we could have converted, that will always be one of our main focus points.
“We need to make sure we know those important aspects in all of our set-pieces, those are aspects you need to know when you’re going to the playoffs,” said the Bulls backline coach.
We need a win to get some momentum – Rossouw
Bulls assistant coach optimistic before facing marauding Lions
Bulls assistant coach Chris Rossouw has stressed that the Lions are an exceptional team ahead of their Jukskei derby match in the United Rugby Championship (URC) on Saturday at Loftus Versfeld (4.45pm).
The Lions have not won against SA franchises since December 2021 when they defeated the Stormers. The indications are that they will be floored by the Bulls this weekend.
The Pretoria-based side is looking to return to winning ways after they lost 23-19 to Stormers at home in their last game.
The Bulls returned to camp this week, and the motivation to get a win over their Gauteng rivals is high but Rossouw has warned his troops to not let their guard down when they take on Ivan van Rooyen's team.
“We need a win to get some momentum," said Rossouw to the media yesterday.
“The Lions have been under a pump for a long time, they are an exceptional team, and they showed it on the weekend (when they beat Glasgow Warriors). For us, whenever we play the Lions we understand how important that game is.
“Playing a South African team is always extra motivation, we need to know how important this game is in terms of points. We need to focus on the process, it’s easy to panic, and the players get a lot of confidence when we stick to the process and systems,” he said.
The Bulls are left with four matches in the round-robin stages of the URC; they are in sixth place on the table with 41 points and look set to make the knockout stages.
Before shifting their attention to the playoffs, Rossouw said they needed to use their final stretch in the regular season to polish their conversion rate and set-pieces.
“We want to win, that is a box we want to tick, to get that win we need to understand that we need to convert when it matters. We had a few opportunities against the Stormers when we could have converted, that will always be one of our main focus points.
“We need to make sure we know those important aspects in all of our set-pieces, those are aspects you need to know when you’re going to the playoffs,” said the Bulls backline coach.