Bulls ready for an ‘arm-wrestle’
HIGHLANDERS: KIWIS TOP SUPER RUGBY TACKLE CHART
Mitchell’s men have conceded the least points out of all the non-New Zealand sides this season.
For all their attacking prowess, the Highlanders are the top tackling team in Super Rugby, which speaks to the difficulty the Bulls will face in trying to break them down at Loftus Versfeld today.
According to the Opta Sports statistics, the Highlanders have made the most tackles in the competition and have the best tackle-success rate of 86%, while Dillon Hunt, Luke Whitelock, Thomas Franklin and Jackson Hemopo are all in the top-10 for individual tackles made.
“They have an exceptional backline that can break you, but it’s their very hard-working pack that just won’t go away. It’s going to be a far greater contest for us this weekend in terms of pressure and whoever handles that best in the middle of the field will probably come out on top,” Bulls coach John Mitchell said.
“They are the masters of chaos, but their defence has certainly got structure – that’s the only way for them to survive the chaos.
“That gives them the freedom to restart and they will give you very few lineouts, only six or seven a game. So they like to keep the ball on the park and I expect them to put attacking kicks behind us through Aaron and Ben Smith and Lima Sopoaga. We have to expect the unexpected as well, so we’ve prepared as best we can.”
But the Bulls have the same love of tackling in their DNA and probably Mitchell’s greatest achievement since arriving in Pretoria has been to shore up their defensive system, such that they have conceded the least points this season per game out of all the nonNew Zealand teams. A lot of sides talk about “being a family”, especially down the years at Loftu, but this Bulls outfit is clearly playing for each other.
“Both teams enjoy playing without the ball but are capable with it as well. But the Highlanders are at you the whole time, they make use of every bit of talent they have. They have some very good players but they also have a fantastic attitude. It’s going to be an arm-wrestle.
“It’s going to come down to crumbs and possession from the fractured game, and who handles the pressure better. It was good to see our attacking mindset was still there against the Rebels, but we want to be more accurate and finish our opportunities. We will be challenged defensively in a different way, but clearly there are opportunities for us and opportunities they see in us that they want to exploit, ” Mitchell said.
Kick-off: 5.15pm