Calls are growing louder for Bulls coach Jake White to give explosive playmaker Willie le Roux a start at flyhalf against the Stormers in a crunch United Rugby Championship clash in Cape Town on Saturday.
Former Springboks Schalk Burger and Akona Ndungane are the latest to join the chorus, lavishing praise on Le Roux for his display in the No 10 jersey against the Lions in January.
The Bulls were dealt a blow earlier in the season when first-choice flyhalf Johan Goosen suffered a knee injury in the team’s Champions Cup win against Stade Francais.
Le Roux turned the game against the Lions on its head when he replaced Boeta Chamberlain after 50 minutes.
When Le Roux entered the fray, the Bulls were trailing 14-13, but his decisive play allowed them to run out 35-22 winners in Johannesburg.
“The Bulls were a different animal once Willie came on,” Burger said.
“The fact that it flattens up, he releases the pressure off the back of the forwards, the forwards had options.
“In the first half, we often just saw Marcell Coetzee tracking it up — Willie comes up and Cameron Hanekom plays beautiful off him.
“The fact that he was flat means that all of a sudden you can see Cobus Wiese carry, and he was largely anonymous in the first half.
“All of a sudden, the forwards see a number on their back, he stands nice and flat, he has the presence of mind to do a little double pump, and it results in an early tackle on Canan Moodie.”
Burger said Le Roux created options and that was key to unlocking opposition defences.
“It’s so nice when someone’s in motion behind you as a loose forward or playmaking forward because you know there’s always an option,” he said.
“It’s not just I’m going into contact — one pass ruck, one pass ruck and once you start having your two or three passes and then a ruck, the speed of those rucks is so much quicker.
“And it’s just positioning, I don’t think Willie was tackled in that second half, it’s not like he was on the deck.
“He had that one tackle on Edwill van der Merwe and that was an impressive one.
“You know, Boeta is a little bit deeper when he opens up behind that pod is often too wide, and then when he does get the ball flat, he turns his shoulders early.”
Ndungane was also full of praise for the mercurial Le Roux.
“In the first half, Boeta was just too deep, it was not a threat at all on the Lions’ defence,” he said.
“And you can see with Willie, he takes the ball, he runs a couple of metres before he makes the pass.
“Now the Lions’ defence has to wait and try to pick up who he is going to play.
“He’s got options on his outside and you could see even if he plays Hanekom there, he’s got just a small gap to get his hands through and get that offload.
“And that’s how the Bulls were able to speed up play.
“That’s a difference. If your 10 can be able to control the game and he is moving forward and is running towards the defence, he’ll always make the right option and Willie is very experienced.
“It’s a pity that the Bulls have to get a 15 and convert him to a flyhalf to be able to play the type of game that they want to play and to get four tries.”
The Herald
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