Vodacom Bulls Director of Rugby, Jake White said at the team announcement on Friday that the Vodacom Bulls are ready to face the Emirates Lions despite missing key players.
White said he knows what the Lions are going to bring on Saturday at 14:00 (SA Time).
“I’m expecting exactly what we get from them every time we play them, they lift their game against us. A lot of them live in this town and have been here as juniors."
“I expect them to want to prove that they can still also have been at the Bulls. Sometimes moving players from one region to another just brings out the best of them."
“We beat them with a bonus point, but I also know that the scoreline didn’t reflect the way that game panned out."
“They’re difficult to beat, and a lot of them have been tapped on the shoulder into the alignment camp, which I’m sure is going to boost them as well.”
White said that the Bulls' fixture list is one of the most demanding in European competitions.
"I’m going to put things in perspective again: nine weeks away some players have had, and then we came back and have to play four derbies."
"Tell me any team in the URC where you have four derby weekends in a row and without a break, and playing teams that have weekends off in between."
“I mean there’s no way that can be a bonus to a team that wants to win.”
“You’ve noticed I haven’t put a link out about how many injured players we’ve got because it doesn’t matter."
“But the reality is everyone is sitting in the same position. I sit here and I say to you, I’m a realist.”