Hooker wants to make mark
AFEW years ago Bandise Maku was one of the highly rated hookers in the country and a regular feature in the Springbok setup, but his career took a slight dip as he dropped down the pecking order at the Blue Bulls.
The King William’s Town-born front-rower is now determined to again stamp his authority next season in what he calls “my season to bounce back”.
At the end of the 2010 season, Maku jumped ship to Gauteng rivals the Lions, where he enjoyed regular game time. He then moved home to the Eastern Cape, where he again was a regular feature in the Southern Kings team that played Super Rugby last year.
After only one season in Port Elizabeth, he returned to the Bulls, but found the going tough as coach Frans Ludeke opted to use hookers Callie Visagie and Bongi Mbonambi ahead of the former Dale College first XV captain.
“I think for me it’s all about going back to the basics in the upcoming season,” the 28year-old said.
“The biggest thing is trying to enjoy the game again and being competitive. I look forward to playing Super Rugby. Missing Super Rugby this year wasn’t motivating for me. I just have to go back and work hard to ensure I do a couple of things right.”
So determined is Maku to make his mark that not even the inclusion of new Bulls recruit, Springbok Adriaan Strauss, who plays in the same position as Maku, deters him from remaining positive about cementing a place in the Bulls first team.
“Rugby is a very competitive sport. I’m looking forward to the challenge,” he says.
“He’s (Strauss) obviously done well for the Springboks. There will be some things that I can learn from him and hopefully he will also be able to learn a couple of things from me as well.”
Maku looks in good shape as the Bulls go through their pre-season preparations. He also added that the young Bulls who have graduated from the junior ranks, which he was once part of, also motivate him to become a better player.
“So far so good. This is going to be a very important year for us, certainly an important one for me personally,” Maku said.
“The strength of the Bulls has always been the U19 and U20 guys coming through. The system is good and it’s good to see some young faces and the enthusiasm that they have.”
While the Bulls did not have a good season this year, Maku remains optimistic that next season will prove to be a better one for the side.
“Going into the next Super Rugby season we will have a more settled squad. There were quite a few guys who played their first season this year, so the lessons they learned this past season they will be able to use in the upcoming season. We are all looking forward to a good season next year.”