Marcell Coetzee: Boland scare a ‘wake-up call’ before Sharks clash

While the Sharks were tested in a tough clash against the Lions last week, the Bulls believe their scare in a friendly against non-URC side, the Boland Cavaliers, helped sharpen them for Saturday’s crucial derby in Pretoria.

The Bulls and Sharks clash at Loftus (kick-off 5pm) in their return United Rugby Championship match after the Sharks won the first leg 21-12 at Kings Park in December.

Last weekend, the Sharks returned from their break in the competition to fight out a 34-22 defeat to the Lions at Ellis Park.

The Bulls, having an extra week off, organised a friendly against Boland at Boland Stadium in Wellington, Western Cape. There, the Bulls fielded 12 Springboks, including centre Jan Serfontein and lock Nicolaas Janse van Rensburg, who returned from injury.

However, they struggled against the Currie Cup semi-finalists, conceding many penalties in the first half while fighting tooth and nail for the ball at the breakdown.

The home side won momentum for periods of play until the Bulls used their physical advantage to good effect, grinding out a 31-24 win to avoid embarrassment.

‘Axe sharpened’

Bulls captain Marcell Coetzee said while his side didn’t dominate as expected, the friendly served as a “wake-up call” that sharpened them ahead of their Sharks derby.

“We had a good two weeks of prep but there’s nothing like playing the real game. That’s the hit-out we got at Boland,” he said.

“It’s one more debate that it’s not URC level. But I think it’s so important you get the axe sharpened against good opposition. I think we managed to do that.”

Bulls ready for Sharks derby at Loftus

Coetzee commended Boland for making the match tough for the Bulls, showing that they would be strong contenders for the upcoming SA Cup.

“I think that was really important for us, to get that battle-hardened contact on the weekend, obviously the Sharks playing against the Lions, we wanted to cover all our bases and be 100% prepared going into this game…

“Everyone got a couple of good minutes against Boland; they really brought it to us. It was a wake-up call.”

While the Sharks are poised to win the URC’s SA Shield for the second time, the Bulls need two wins, with at least one bonus point, from their final two local derbies to have a chance, provided the Stormers beat the Lions this weekend.

They face the Stormers at home on 14 March in their final local derby.