Jackson can be Bulls’ go-to man
CENTRE: HE COMMUNICATES, ORGANISES, MAKES CALLS
Ken Borland
Blue Bulls centre JT Jackson enjoys making delivery of the advantage line for his team, but the 22-year-old is not just a blunt weapon, he also has a crucial role in communication and organisation of the defence.
“I like the responsibility of being an important ball-carrier and it’s nice to get the team over the advantage line, I enjoy the physical side, but I also like to pass and run. I prefer inside centre, I haven’t played a lot of 13, I just enjoy being closer to the action because I was a flyhalf at school and I like to make decisions.
“The centres also need to organise the defence and communication is vital from the edges. Our defensive system is a lot about defending the opposition playing from nine, we can’t get caught in the ruck. That was a big problem against the Lions, but it was much better last weekend against Griquas,” Jackson said at Loftus Versfeld yesterday.
The former SA U-20 player from South-Western Districts believes communication could also play a role in solving the lapses in concentration that have dogged the Blue Bulls lately.
“We’ve suffered from a loss of focus, especially after a good start, but just before and just after half-time is the most important time. We need to switch on then and we even have a key phrase for it – ‘championship minutes’, when that is called we all need to buy in. But sometimes you are very tired just before halftime,” Jackson said.
The Blue Bulls’ mission to reach the Currie Cup semifinals faces a crucial hurdle on Friday night as they host the Pumas, their closest challengers for fourth place behind the unbeaten Golden Lions, Sharks and Western Province, after which operations cease for three weeks thanks to the absolute mess the Currie Cup schedule is this season.
“We know this week is the most important of our campaign, if we can get five points and keep the Pumas to zero then we will already be in the semifinals. But it’s the same for them, they’re desperate to stay in contention.
“We’re going to be up against a huge pack and the Pumas have a very good maul. So if our discipline is like it was last week, then they’re just going to kick for poles and for the line to get their maul on against us. In our first two games, our penalty count was very low, but then it’s been very high the last two games.
“So we’re working very hard on that, especially not being offsides. We knew we had to win away against Griquas because our backs were against the wall.
“We played our best rugby in the first 30 minutes, but then we lost a bit of focus and two yellow cards made it very tough for us. Fortunately we defended very well at the end,” the in-form Jackson said.