Vodacom Bulls coach Johan Ackermann says recovery will be key after his side’s hard-fought Vodacom URC win over Edinburgh.
The Bulls overturned a 17-5 half-time deficit to claim a valuable 19-17 victory at Hive Stadium on Friday night, but Ackermann admitted the physical toll was significant – particularly on the artificial surface.
“Unfortunately, both [winger] Cheswill Jooste and [centre] Sebastian de Klerk picked up head knocks,” he said. “They’re both looking fine this morning, up and smiling and with us, but they’ll have to go through the return-to-play protocols. It’s a compulsory stand-down, so they probably won’t be available [against the Lions at Ellis Park] next week.
“There are a lot of sore bodies, a lot of cuts, bruises and stitches,” he added. “That artificial surface does take its toll, so recovery is massive for us now.”
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Ackermann praised his players’ composure, particularly after trailing by 12 points.
“There was no panic. Even at half-time, the feeling was that we could turn it around. There’s a belief that we can put pressure on teams and score when we need to.
“It wasn’t pretty, but we’ll take it. The mood is positive, but there’s still a lot of work to be done. It’s only another game ticked off, and there’s a lot of rugby left this season.”
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The Bulls face a gruelling trip back to South Africa via Paris which will see them only land in Joburg around lunchtime on Sunday.
“We’re flying just after 11am, get to Paris around 1:30pm, then we sit at the airport for nine hours before our connection at 11:30pm,” Ackermann explained. “We’ll only arrive in Johannesburg tomorrow. It’s a long travel day, but unfortunately there’s nothing we can do about it.”
Ackermann said the late kick-off and post-match commitments added to the fatigue.
“By the time we got back to the hotel it was around 11pm, then dinner, and the earliest anyone got to bed was midnight. We were up and out by 8am. Not everyone sleeps well on planes, so our biggest challenge is to use the week smartly to freshen the bodies.”
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