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Jake White not too concerned about Bulls’ long injury list
'It does come with the risk of losing a few guys, so there are guys that are a bit sore.'
Jake White and his Bulls side will focus on the United Rugby Championship playoffs. Picture: by Steve Haag Sports/Gallo Images.
The Bulls medical team will have their work cut out this week as they look to get several players with injury concerns ready for Saturday’s United Rugby Championship quarter-final clash with Benetton at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday (kick-off 3.30pm).
Regular players like Kurt-Lee Arendse, Canan Moodie, Wilco Louw, Cameron Hanekom, and Marco van Staden, who spent a long time on the floor being attended to by the doctors during this last weekend’s match in Durban on Saturday, walked off with some niggles in the Bulls’ 26-14 win over the Sharks in the final round of the URC regular season.
The Bulls, who had already secured their place in the playoffs, celebrated winning the URC South African Shield with the win and a second-place finish on the points table. However, the injury concerns hit a sour note as they have happened just before the start of the knockout stages.
‘It starts to get tougher and tougher’
Jake White, the Bulls’ director of rugby, said injuries often occur at this stage of the season because of the physical intensity.
“Unfortunately, it’s at the back end of the competition; it starts to get tougher and tougher and it starts to become more and more physical because the margins get smaller. And it does come with the risk of losing a few guys, so there are guys that are a bit sore,” said White after the match in Durban.
White said he suspects Van Staden may be ruled out of the last eight clash with Benetton.
“It’s one of those difficult ones. I think a guy like Marco won’t be available next week but the others seem to be ok. It’s a bump and a bruise, but it’s always difficult because when you get to the medical room, things that you think aren’t serious overnight can flare up and swell,” he said.
Bulls ready for playoffs
The Bulls’ win against the Sharks came courtesy of tries by David Kriel, Johan Grobbelaar, and Akker van der Merwe (2). Reflecting on the victory, White said he was happy with how the Bulls were able to get maul tries as they will be vital in the playoffs.
“We could score from long distance, and when the pressure was on to score from the maul, which is going to be crucial in the playoffs,” White said.
“We have played really well, again we scored four tries. Even though we made so many mistakes, we still looked like we can score from anywhere, and that was good.”
