The need for shiny objects to adorn their trophy cabinet is not lost on Bulls president Willem Strauss.
The forever sanguine Strauss is happy to point to the fortress where the cabinet is located but the blue citadel appears under siege, not from marauders marching to Pretoria but from forces within.
The Bulls’ failure to deliver a United Rugby Championship (URC) trophy, after losing in their third final in the competition’s four-year history, has been met with unease. However, that is dwarfed by the potential fall-out from the reported rift that has emerged between senior players — most notably regular captain Ruan Nortje and occasional skipper Marcell Coetzee — and director of rugby Jake White.
“I don’t want to react on that. We will have our meeting on July 4, when we review the season and determine the way ahead,” Strauss said in a less enthusiastic tone.
White again pointed to a lack of depth in his squad in the wake of their chastening 32-7 final defeat at the hands of Leinster earlier this month. White has long bemoaned the fact that some of South Africa’s top talent ply their trade abroad, and has called for more concerted effort to restore them to the local firmament.
The Bulls, by extension, would benefit from such mass repatriation as they battle Europe’s elite.
But at least we reached the final for the third time in four years, which is a fantastic achievement. We went further than any other South African team in the Challenge Cup. I am satisfied but one wants to win trophies as well.
— Willem Strauss, Bulls president
Dearth in depth
To be fair, the coaches at the Sharks and the Stormers have had similar complaints about a dearth in depth but they have been less Trump-ish in the way they’ve conveyed their message. There have been times White resembled the dissatisfied toddler perennially in demand of a new toy, ripe for ripping from the box.
Given all the talk of a reported rift with the players, White’s position seems tenuous. He does, however, have a long established friendship with Bulls’ equity partner, Remgro chairman Johann Rupert.
It is strongly rumoured former Bulls and Bok lock Johan Ackermann will return to the kraal. Ackermann helped steer the Lions to two Super Rugby finals before moving to Gloucester, as well as the Red Hurricanes and the Urayasu D-Rocks in Japan.
Since returning from Japan, Ackermann, a three-times SA Rugby coach of the year was absorbed into the SA Rugby structures as coaching consultant to the Junior Boks. He may be itching for a more engaging gig.
Strauss though is careful not to discard the baby with the bath water. “Well, we again stumbled over the final hurdle,” said Strauss about the Bulls’ defeat in the most recent URC final.”
Fantastic achievement
“But at least we reached the final for the third time in four years, which is a fantastic achievement. We went further than any other South African team in the Challenge Cup. I am satisfied but one wants to win trophies as well.”
Strauss was loath to say whether the Bulls have under-achieved or over-performed with what they have at their disposal. “There is so much more to consider. We produce Springboks, our systems work, we have a high performance centre that is running well, so I take a more holistic view than just looking at finals.
“You have to consider the development of players like Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Sebastian de Klerk, Keagan Johannes, JF van Heerden — how they developed this year — then I’m satisfied with the holistic picture but now I want silverware.”
Strauss said irrespective of the outcome of his July 4 review of the season with ARC (African Rainbow Capital) and Remgro, the Bulls are in for better days. “I’m really looking forward to next season.
“We will have a dream squad. We’ll add Handré Pollard, Jan Serfontein, Nikolaas Janse van Rensburg and Paul de Wet. We will have depth. We will be serious contenders for the URC, and I want us to do a lot better in the EPCR (Champions Cup and Challenge Cup) competitions.”
It would, of course, be more than a little ironic if the man who had championed the creation of a “dream squad” is jettisoned before its final assembly.
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