Johan Grobbelaar the Bulls’ standout in URC statistics

Bulls hooker Johan Grobbelaar has a few big months ahead of him as he hopes to earn more selection for the Springboks come the start of the international season in July.

The Pretoria union’s leading try scorer has once again driven much of their set-piece success this season, placing him near the top of the stats tables.

Last year, he backed up World Rugby Player of the Year Malcolm Marx in the Springbok setup, replacing him off the bench in all but two of his five games — one he played in full, the other he was substituted for Bongi Mbonambi.

That came after he topped the URC’s lineout wins and scored five tries that year.

Bulls leading try scorer

‘Grobbies’ already has five tries to his name half-way through the tournament, including a hat-trick against the Ospreys. His other two came in the Bulls’ last two matches, against Edinburgh and Lions.

This puts him tied for third on the tournament’s try-scoring chart, just two behind Glasgow Warriors scrumhalf Jamie Dobie, who leads the standings.

The Bulls have not yet lost a match where he has scored.

But driving the maul with ball in hand is not his only speciality. Grobbelaar is solid in defence and attack and is as good as any in the set-piece.

With 85 lineout wins so far, he ranks second in the tournament, three lineout wins behind leader André-Hugo Venter.

Grobbelaar has helped power the Bulls to the top of the scrum stats. They’ve won 65 scrums and only lost two, a 97% win percentage – more than any other team. The Bulls have also won 28 scrum penalties, the third most in the tournament.

Grobbelaar faces tough opposition

The hooker will be looking for a strong finish to the season as he hopes to build on eight Springbok caps, perhaps starting at the international season opener against England at Ellis Park on 4 July.

Of course he faces tough competition from Venter and Mbonambi, whose Stormers and Sharks have also been prolific in the set-piece, as well as Marnus van der Merwe, whose team, Scarlets, have won 93% of their scrums and 88% of their lineouts despite having a torrid season so far with just three victories.

But with the Bulls on the rise having secured three straight wins for the first time this season, one feels Grobbelaar’s time has come.