The road to the championship may still be a fair bit away from being concluded but the Bulls will be well advised to keep to that old age adage that defence will win them the title as they look to overpower the rumbling Crusaders in their Super Rugby clash on Saturday at Loftus Versfeld.
One of the biggest concerns coming out of their narrow 25-24 win over the Western Force over the weekend was how easily the Australians were able to breach their defensive line and it will be critical that they not only defend but also show ruthlessness on attack if they are to maintain their seven-year winning streak at home.
Bulls defence coach Pine Pienaar is adamant that the team will need to hold their line against the Crusaders but the blueprint to victory will also be enhanced by how well they are able to reap reward with ball in hand.
Pienaar says that the Bulls will need to strike a balance between defence and attack if they are to march on to their fourth consecutive victory and catapult themselves above the Crusaders on the Super Rugby log.
Even though the Bulls leaked their most tries of the season against the Force, three to be exact, Pienaar holds the opinion that the Bulls will need to concede less while scoring more against a Crusaders side who are seemingly hitting their straps after a poor start to the competition. “Broken field is the type of game you want to create for yourself so you talk about defence and that high work rate to create the broken field and the turnover. It all boils down to one or two turnovers you create and hopefully you can score from that,” Pienaar said yesterday.
Pienaar, though, believes that the Bulls can fulfill their desire to play a more attacking game and one that can match that of the Crusaders as has been the case over the past seven years where the Bulls have just managed to outwit and outscore the New Zealanders at home.
However, Pienaar is also wary of the danger the Crusaders pose especially after their two morale-boosting wins over the Lions and Cheetahs and feels that they are the kind of side who are always championship contenders even when playing away from home in Christchurch.
In striking the balance between defence and attack and having the pressure of keeping their dominance over the Crusaders at home, the Bulls will also be faced with another balancing act of selecting their best team but also keeping the interest of the national team by resting the Springboks in their side.
However, with so much at stake and facing their biggest rivals outside of South Africa, the Bulls are likely to elevate Victor Matfield and Trevor Nyakane back into the starting line-up while keeping the remainder of their Springboks in the team in the hope of a result that will be the catalyst to a season that will be as memorable as the others when they have beaten the Crusaders at Loftus.