Bulls hope to exploit Jaguares’ habit of being naughty

Bulls coach John Mitchell believes that ill-discipline is still a black mark that can be held against the Jaguares, as well as a mediocre record when playing at home.

The only problem is that the Bulls have actually conceded more penalties in Super Rugby this year than their hosts in Buenos Aires on Saturday, while the Pretoria side’s overseas record is notoriously bad.

While only three sides have conceded more than the Jaguares’ 10.4 penalties per game this season, the Bulls are unfortunately one of those teams, incurring the wrath of the referee  11.4 times per match.

Having Glen Jackson referee them on successive weekends probably didn’t help.

And while the Argentinian team were outstanding on tour to Australasia, winning all four of their matches, they have been strangely lacklustre at home this year, winning just two of their last eight games at home.

But the Bulls have lost their last nine games outside South Africa.

Nevertheless, Mitchell is full of belief that his side can pick up a crucial win across the Atlantic on Saturday.

“The Jaguares are actually more consistent playing away than they have been at home and they still give away a lot of penalties. Not too many teams have tried to drive them, get them yellow cards, so there is an opportunity there for us. And the fields there are fast and a bit narrower than usual.

“But I know their conditioning coach well having worked with him in the United States and they are well-conditioned, they don’t blow out. They’ve got their wins playing their own way and they have an extremely good flat attack and they pass a lot. They’ll certainly be confident,” Mitchell said.

Which all suggests the Bulls may bring a more economic, grind-them-down approach than expected.

“The Jaguares aren’t going to do a Melbourne Rebels and try and slow things down, although they will stick to the same things they were doing on their tour, they like to scrum well and having a plus-one step into the lineout is a big feature of their play as well. They also like to move you around. So our defence is going to have to be smarter and very flat, they like their multiple runners down one channel.

“But beating a team in your conference is worth double in this competition, it allows you to make massive strides, especially as we head into the business part of the season, when we’re all vying to finish first or second in our group and try to create some pressure on the Lions,” Mitchell said.

For more sport your way, follow The Citizen on Facebook and Twitter.