Pote has the best of both worlds in Morne and Manie
BULLS coach Pote Human says he has the best of both worlds in two vastly different flyhalves in veteran Morne Steyn and young star Manie Libbok.
Both players featured for the Bulls in their pre-season warm-up match against the Lions at FNB Stadium on Sunday, with Steyn starting and Libbok coming on as an early replacement at fullback for the injured Warrick Gelant.
Veteran Steyn, 35, who rejoined the Bulls from Stade Francais ahead of this year’s Super Rugby competition, delivered a composed and sound performance at flyhalf, with Libbok, 22, equally impressive at No 15. Both men are sure to play regularly for the Bulls this season, either at No 10 or 15, even though Gelant will be the favourite to start at fullback. Human said he was happy with Steyn’s first proper test since pulling on a Bulls jersey for the first time since 2013.
“I’m very happy with Morne’s game,” said Human after his team’s 40-35 win against the Lions in the Superhero Sunday fixture. “He had a good kicking game and kept the guys calm on the field.”
Human added that he was pleased Libbok got a lot of game time, even if it was at fullback in place of Gelant who hurt his neck early on against the Lions. “He plays with no fear and is a very talented player,” Human said. “It’s a bonus for us that he played at (No) 15, but he slotted in easily at 10 as well.”
Sunday’s match was also a trial run for regular wing Cornal Hendricks in midfield, who the Bulls are hoping to use at outside centre this year. While Hendricks made a few errors and allowed one or two almost certain tries to go begging, he scored the match winner and looked good at times closer to the action.
“I’ll have to have a look at his performance on video, but I was happy... he didn’t perform too badly at all,” said Human.
The Bulls delivered a strong performance in a match where the result wasn’t a factor, but Human said there was still a lot of work to do before the start of Super Rugby. “There were a number of soft moments, that allowed the Lions through to score tries,” he said.
“We can’t have those moments when the competition is on the go... so we’re going to need to focus on playing for the full 80 minutes. On a positive note, I thought our discipline was good.”
Human added that he got a sense that there was a bit more energy around ahead of Super Rugby, stemming from the Springboks winning the Rugby World Cup just a few months ago in Japan. “I get the sense there’s definitely a renewed energy (in South African rugby) at the moment. Everyone now wants to also play well and do well for the franchises, so we’ll see what we can do. It won’t be easy, but if we put in the hard work we’ll see how we can get better.”