Pollard: It is up to Bulls to make it as tough as possible for the Hurricanes
MUCH has been made of the threat the Hurricanes and World Rugby Player of the Year Beauden Barrett pose ahead of their clash against the Bulls at Loftus on Saturday.
The Hurricanes come to the capital as one of the strongest teams in Super Rugby after their heroics in winning the tournament two years ago before bowing out in the semi-finals last year. The men from the New Zealand capital will also be buoyed by the presence of their magician and All Black flyhalf Barrett and they will look to him to deliver victory on Saturday.
But maybe, just maybe, it is the Hurricanes that must be worried about the Bulls and the fact that Springbok flyhalf Handre Pollard is in the best shape of his life.
After having endured two injury plagued seasons, Pollard looks set to start at No 10 against the Hurricanes and roll back the years to when he was one of the most spoken about young players in the world.
“It hasn’t been nice sitting and sorting out injuries in the past two years, but that is part of the game. I learnt a lot and at the end of year I was grateful to get an opportunity to play for the Boks. It is always a challenge coming back from injuries but one challenge I relish and look forward to,” said Pollard.
And the former World Rugby Junior Player of the Year, Pollard, has promised to make life difficult for the visiting New Zealanders.
“The Hurricanes are a quality side and have been in the playoffs for the last few years and there is just talent oozing out everywhere. It is up to us to make it as tough as possible for them at Loftus. It is not easy touring,” said a beaming Pollard.
It is not that Pollard is not aware of what the Bulls will be up against on Saturday but it is the confidence that the team enjoys after three pre-season matches against the Sharks, Stormers and Jaguares that makes Pollard confident that they have covered their bases heading into the new season.
The Bulls players and management have expressed great satisfaction at how well the pre-season has gone, but the real test will certainly come on the weekend.
“Luckily not all the conferences started last weekend and that is a benefit. We are raring to go and we’ve worked hard. We’ve had our four pre-season games and really got a lot of reward out of it, had no serious injuries so we are very happy with where we are at this stage and we just want to get going now,” Pollard said.
“We have prepared well, we had a great pre-season but at the end of the day the proof is in the pudding. You have to go out and play well in Super Rugby. All the work has been done, it is about executing well under pressure on Saturday.”