Battered Bulls hoping Jamba can inspire them to samba
Ulengo has been out for an extended period due to a knee injury but possesses the X-factor the men from Loftus could use in the Super Rugby run-in.
Waisake Naholo of the Highlanders and Jamba Ulengo of the Bulls during the Super Rugby match between Vodacom Bulls and Highlanders at Loftus Versfeld on May 13, 2017 in Pretoria, South Africa. (Photo by Christiaan Kotze/Gallo Images)
Ken Borland
The Bulls returned to Pretoria on Monday after the humbling they received from the Jaguares in Buenos Aires at the weekend, but there is no time for moping as the Brumbies await in another crucial Super Rugby game at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.
The Brumbies were certainly competitive against the Lions at Ellis Park, until the effects of a red and a yellow card saw them well-beaten 42-24, but the Bulls desperately need a win over the Australians to stay in touch with the Sharks and Jaguares, one of whom will leap over the 30-point line as they play each other this weekend in Buenos Aires.
The Bulls are currently on 24 points.
Captain Burger Odendaal seems to have recovered from the rib injury that kept him out of the trip to Argentina, and promising utility forward Hendre Stassen is the one casualty for the Bulls, having suffered an ankle injury against the Jaguares.
Ruben van Heerden, the promising SA U20 lock, could well be the replacement having impressed for the Blue Bulls in the SuperSport Rugby Challenge game in Oudtshoorn at the weekend.
The win over the Golden Lions, achieved in the last minute, also marked the return to rugby of Jamba Ulengo, the Springbok wing.
But the 28-year-old said the comeback is still very much a work in construction and he is not ready for Super Rugby yet.
“I’m a bit rusty obviously but I’m very grateful to be back on the field because my chances of playing rugby again were limited. The knee was solid and with game time everything will fall into place. I injured it at the end of 2016 but played with a sore knee throughout last year. Eventually I went to see a Swedish specialist and he was able to pick up that my patella was deteriorating, there was a bone and a vein growing underneath it, so I was in pain whenever I ran.
“So the struggle right now is to get noticed again, I just want to get as much game time as possible. I felt good but that game sharpness takes time, you have to get back into it after almost a year on the sideline. I’m not thinking of Super Rugby for now, we will see about that next year,” Ulengo said in Oudtshoorn.
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