Vodacom Bulls scrum coach Werner Kruger was cautious but optimistic when praising the Stormers scrum during a recent media opportunity, but he said the Vodacom Bulls needs to lay down a marker when they pack down on Saturday.
Kruger said that the Vodacom Bulls know that if they are to stop the DHL Stormers and break their four-game losing streak, they will have to do it upfront.
North-South derbies are always physical, with set-piece dominance at the heart of either team’s hopes of success according to Kruger.
“North-South derbies are always physical and it is always going to start up front, so we are under no illusions that it is going to be physical and tough. It doesn’t matter what personnel the Stormers at the moment put out, their scrum is functioning well as a unit and as a pack.
“It is a big challenge for us, and in derbies like that it is going to come down to fine margins and we need our setpiece to function and work well,”
“This is one week where we really need top focus and make sure our set pieces function well.”
“Some games we scrummed well and we were a little bit inconsistent in others, but this is one weekend where we really need to focus and to make sure it is functioning well.”
“Naturally you want to go out and win in a north-south derby but that isn’t our focus. Our focus is to implement the game plan that we put together for this game and there are things we want to achieve. It is up to us to stay in the structures and not worry about things that happen outside. We can’t do anything about the previous games that happened but we can control what we do on Saturday on the field.”
Kruger said cutting out excessive ‘movement’ is going to be key to successful set pieces. He added that with the expected wet conditions and slippery underfoot, the set pieces will require some tactical adjustments.
“The more movement there is, the bigger the chances are of somebody slipping."
“Everything tightens up a little bit if it is that wet, it is vital for the team to stick to our structures and not to attempt anything you haven’t worked on in training. The better we get our systems working on the day, the better it will be for us.”
