The Vodacom Bulls may have claimed the early-season bragging rights with a clinical 38–26 pre-season victory over the DHL Stormers at Faure Street Stadium, but head coach Johan Ackermann faces an anxious wait in the medical room ahead of their United Rugby Championship (URC) opener against Zebre Parma on 26 September.
While Ackermann was thoroughly pleased with the tactical output and physical intensity of the clash, a string of high-profile injuries to key playmakers has tempered the post-match celebrations.
The most immediate concern for the Bulls' coaching staff centres around marquee flyhalf signing Curwin Bosch, who was a late withdrawal from the warm-up fixture.
“Curwin was scheduled to play, but he had strapping on his calf,” Ackermann revealed. “We are a little bit worried. We hope he’ll be right for the first round, but it’s still too early [to tell]. He hurt it at training, and they still need to scan it properly. They’re just waiting for the first few days to pass to see whether he’ll be right for the first round.”
Compounding the anxiety at halfback is the ongoing recovery of Springbok scrumhalf Embrose Papier, who has been sidelined with an ankle injury since facing the All Blacks on 15 August. Ackermann conceded that rushing the energetic No. 9 back into the mix is out of the question.
“He’s [Papier's] also one who I think will struggle to be ready for the start of the season, because an ankle injury is always something one can’t rush,” the Bulls boss noted.
Adding minor concern to the backline list, veteran fullback Willie le Roux finished the match nursing a tight hamstring, though the camp remains hopeful it is nothing more than standard pre-season fatigue.
Despite the looming selection headaches, Ackermann refused to let the injury updates overshadow a highly constructive outing in Paarl. The physical encounter provided the exact operational stress-test required before heading north for Europe.
Catching up with Stormers counterpart John Dobson after the final whistle, Ackermann emphasised that the exercise checked almost every box.
“I just said to Dobbo that it was perfect in terms of what we wanted to see,” Ackermann said. “There were mistakes that we know we have to go and fix, but the biggest plus is that there were no injuries [during the game itself]. Willie has a little bit of a hammy, but otherwise we came through reasonably well, and there were also some good moments that we’re happy about.”
