Bulls' musclemen don't scare Cats

By Jacques van der Westhuyzen

In spite of neither man having Super 12 experience, Cats coach Chester Williams is confident Schalk Brits and Rich Verster will hold their own in the front row against the Bulls at Ellis Park on Saturday.

With veteran Naka Drotske out of the game because of a knee injury, Brits is likely to make his debut in the middle of the front row, with Free State's Verster on the bench. They're set to face arguably the strongest pack in the competition.

"I'm not at all concerned about their experience," said Williams yesterday. "My only problem is deciding who to start and who to put on the bench."

"My team has got to match the Bulls for power, and while many people feel Schalk isn't a strong scrummager, our props are all satisfied with his strength."

Williams names his team tomorrow and should include Jorrie Muller at centre, despite the Springbok's inactivity, because of flu, this week.

Not surprisingly Williams said he'd found very few cracks in the Bulls' armoury, making it difficult for his team to focus in on any potential weaknesses.

"The Bulls play according to a specific system that works so well for them, that it's difficult to break them down into different compartments."

"They will win all their line-out ball and probably everything at the kickoffs and in the scrums, so the execution of our plays will be crucial."

"Successful rugby is about ball retention and defence; we've worked really hard on these areas and we're confident of standing our ground."

The Bulls will name their team on Wednesday and indications are that Victor Matfield will lead the side in the absence of the injured Anton Leonard.

Meanwhile, the Stormers and Sharks, who clash at Newlands on Friday, named their teams yesterday. Gaffie du Toit will wear the No 10 jersey for the Stormers, while Jaco Gouws will lead the Sharks.

Stormers: Werner Greeff; Breyton Paulse, Marius Joubert, De Wet Barry, Jean de Villiers; Gaffie du Toit, Neil de Kock (capt); Joe van Niekerk, Schalk Burger, Luke Watson; Gerrie Britz, Quinton Davids; Faan Rautenbach, Pieter Dixon, Eddie Andrews Replacements: Hanyani Shimange, Riaan Olckers, Rob Linde, Adri Badenhorst, Bolla Conradie, Gus Theron, Tiger Mangweni

Sharks: Brent Russell; Odwa Ndungane, Trevor Halstead, Gcobani Bobo, Dean Hall; Butch James, Craig Davidson; Jaco Gouws (capt), Braam Immelman, Jacques Botes; Albert van den Berg, Nico Breedt; Brendan Botha, Skipper Badenhorst, Eduard Coetzee Replacements: John Smit, Danie Saayman, Charl van Rensburg, Solly Tyibilika, Ruan Pienaar, Rudi Keil, Jacques Schutte