Bulls to soldier on without coach White

The Bulls are adjusting to the stand-in coaches who have taken charge of the team after head coach Jake White was admitted to hospital with a medical emergency earlier this week.

White is likely to be released from hospital on Friday but the Bulls have mandated some rest for him until at least February 8, meaning he will not be anywhere near the team for the immediate future.

When he missed the game in Wales against the Dragons,  assistant coach Russell Winter did the pregame talk and backline coach Chris Rossouw has taken charge this week.

The coaching team will share the responsibilities with others such as assistants Nollis Marais and Pine Pienaar. 

Bulls captain Ruan Nortjé said the squad was unfazed by the change in the coaching set-up.

“He [Jake] was unwell the whole week, so the other coaches really took charge effectively. We all understand the system that coach Jake has implemented. It was quite easy to adapt to,” Nortjé said.

Nortjé believes the side pulled together in Wales and showed a lot of character in their bonus point win over the Dragons.

And he said the calmness in the team made his job as captain a lot easier.

“We really showed great character. There was some pressure on us in terms of results because we definitely let ourselves down, and then the withdrawal of Chris Smith and Jake’s illness put even more on us.

“I was really proud of how cool and calm we remained. That result was really massive for us. It wasn’t a perfect performance, but we definitely showed some better stuff.

“Our discipline was really improved,” Nortjé said. 

Nortjé copped some criticism, notably from White as well, on his leadership against the Sharks where he was outplayed by Siya Kolisi in conversations with the referee, with Nortjé preferring a low profile, something that was in stark contrast with the chummy chats Marius van der Westhuizen had with Kolisi and other Sharks players on the night.

But the lock is slowly learning the ropes after being shunted into the role when Marcell Coetzee left for his sabbatical in Japan.

“I know myself much better than anybody else, so I know what I am capable of and I know my teammates believe in me and that is the most important thing.

“It’s all learning. I am still getting used to the captaincy role, but it is something that excites me very much.

“It’s just about me constantly learning and growing every weekend,” Nortjé said.

SuperSport.com