Young Bulls team does not lack experience – coach

A TOUGH Super Rugby season awaits a youngish Bulls team, but to label three-time Super Rugby champions inexperienced is something coach Nollis Marais disputes.

When the Bulls take on the Stormers in their opening match of the season on February 27 it will be a new experience for Marais and most of his coaching staff.

It will signal the beginning of their journey overseeing the Super Rugby side following their promotion from coaching Currie Cup rugby last year.

The head coach has made it no secret since taking over the reins from former mentor Frans Ludeke that there should be no expectation of immediate success.

“It’s going to be a process,” he said. “We have four years to build.”

With the large number of talented young players at the Bulls, the Pretoria side have the potential to build one of the most entertaining and talented sides to come out of the South African conference over the next few seasons.

On the other hand, the youthfulness of the side brings with it the danger of a naive team going into the new season. Marais, however, disagrees. “At the end of the day, if you look at a player like Handre Pollard – he is 21 years old, but has played 20 tests. Jan Serfontein is 22 and has close to 30 test caps,” he pointed out.

“They may be young in age, but they have vast international experience. That has to count for something.”

Victor Matfield, Flip van der Merwe, Pierre Spies, Francois Hougaard and Akona Ndungane, who all garnered vast Super Rugby experience, are no longer part of the Bulls.

“What people seem to forget is that we still have senior guys like Steggies [Deon Stegmann], Werner Kruger and [captain] Adriaan Strauss – those are guys with a lot of experience.

“So we can’t look at the ages of the players in the squad and say it is an inexperienced side,” Marais said.

While the coach is not overly concerned about the overall experience in the side, he does express worry at the lack of old hands in the second row at lock.

Evidently the void left by Matfield, Van der Merwe and Jacques du Plessis will be a difficult one to fill.

The lanky Grant Hattingh, who is plying his trade in Japan with Kubota Spears, will be the man tasked with taking charge in the second row. With 39 Super Rugby caps he remains the most senior.