Bulls field all-Springbok front row for Stormers derby

Wilco Louw starts in an all-Springbok front row for the Bulls. Picture: Anton Geyser/Gallo Images The Bulls have named 10 Springboks, including an all-Bok front row, for their final United Rugby Championship local derby against the Stormers on Saturday. The teams meet at Loftus Versfeld at 2pm with the Stormers set for a worst-place South African Shield finish, and the Bulls out to avoid the same fate.

The Stormersare bottom of the Shield table but could replace the Bulls at third with a win, which would still be their lowest ever finish. If the Bulls win, they would move from third to second ahead of the Sharks. The Stormers are fifth on the overall table and shouldn’t slip further if they lose.

But they could climb as high as second with Leinster, Cardiff and Munster not playing this weekend. The Bulls could move from eighth to seventh with a win. Moving into the starting XV for the Bulls are Gerhard Steenekamp, Johan Grobbelaar, and Wilco Louw with Alulutho Tshakweni, Jan-Hendrik Wessels, and Mornay Smith, who all started against the Sharks two weeks ago, dropping to the replacements bench to provide second-half impact.In the loose forwards, there is a strategic rotation at eighthman where in-form Jeandré Rudolph earns a start in the number eight jersey, moving up from the bench.Captain Marcell Coetzeeand the powerhouse Elrigh Louw remain settled in their starting roles.The Bulls have, however, opted for total continuity in the backline.

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There are no changes to the starting back seven after theirhuge performance against the Sharks. The silky halfback pairing of Embrose Papier and Handré Pollard remains intact, while the dangerous back three of Kurt-Lee Arendse, Sebastian de Klerk, and David Kriel will once again lead the attack. Significantly, Cobus Wiese and Marco van Staden,poised to make his 100th first-class appearancefor the Bulls, provide grunt among the forwards on the bench.

Paul de Wet and Willie le Roux are retained as the specialist backline cover to provide cool heads in the closing stages. 15 David Kriel, 14 Sebastian de Klerk, 13 Canan Moodie, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Embrose Papier, 8 Jeandré Rudolph, 7 Elrigh Louw, 6 Marcell Coetzee (captain), 5 Ruan Nortjé, 4 Ruan Vermaak, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Johan Grobbelaar, 1 Gerhard Steenekamp.

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