The Bulls just got significantly more dangerous. Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus has released two of his international heavyweights for Saturday’s Loftus Versfeld showdown with the All Blacks, handing Johan Ackermann’s side a massive injection of Test-match class exactly when they need it most.
Elrigh Louw and Johan Grobbelaar are officially in the mix. The Springbok duo have linked up with the Bulls squad after jetting back from Argentina, where South Africa faced Los Pumas last Saturday in the Rugby Championship. Both will feature amongst the replacements, their presence on the bench adding genuine game-changing firepower to a Bulls side already loaded with ambition and quality.
This is the kind of boost that can shift the narrative of a match. Test-hardened experience. International pedigree. Springbok steel. And it’s all coming off the Bulls bench at altitude on Saturday night.
The All Blacks have been warned.
Fresh off the plane, straight into battle
Louw and Grobbelaar have had precisely one training session with the Bulls after touching down from Buenos Aires. That’s it. No extended preparation, no week-long integration into team structures, just a single hit-out before being thrust into the cauldron of a Greatest Rivalry tour clash at Loftus.
But when you’re dealing with players of this calibre, one session is enough. Both know the Bulls’ systems intimately from previous campaigns, both bring Test-match intensity that can’t be coached, and both offer impact that could prove decisive in the final quarter when legs tire and altitude bites.
Johan Ackermann is understandably delighted to have them available.
“It’s great to have them with us, and we’re looking forward to the challenge,” the Bulls boss said.
It’s a typically measured response from Ackermann, but make no mistake, this is a significant coup. The Bulls were already fielding a formidable side. Now they’ve added two Springboks who were battling Argentina in Test rugby less than a week ago.
Louw and Grobbelaar: Game changing impact
Elrigh Louw brings brutality, physicality, and ball-carrying menace from the back row. The powerful loose forward has the ability to gain hard yards in tight exchanges and punish defences around the fringes making him a nightmare to contain. Coming on fresh against tiring All Blacks defenders at altitude could be absolutely lethal.
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Johan Grobbelaar adds set-piece excellence at hooker. His lineout work is meticulous, his scrummaging solid, and his work rate around the park relentless. If the Bulls need to close out a tight match in the final 20 minutes, Grobbelaar’s experience and composure could prove invaluable.
Both players slot onto a bench that already featured quality. Now it’s stacked with genuine match-winners.
Revised Bulls arsenal
The starting XV remains unchanged from the initially named side, with Willie le Roux at fullback, Curwin Bosch orchestrating proceedings at flyhalf, and captain Marcell Coetzee leading a powerful pack. But the bench has been significantly upgraded.
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The All Blacks have been dominant on tour, dispatching the Stormers and demolishing the Sharks without breaking a sweat. But they haven’t faced a Bulls side with this much firepower, at altitude, with Springboks coming off the bench.
Saturday night at Loftus just got a whole lot more interesting.
Revised Bulls team to face the All Blacks:
Starting XV: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Thaakir Abrahams, 13 Stedman Gans, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Stravino Jacobs, 10 Curwin Bosch, 9 Embrose Papier, 8 Jeandré Rudolph, 7 Hanro Liebenberg, 6 Marcell Coetzee (captain), 5 JF van Heerden, 4 Ruan Vermaak, 3 Francois Klopper, 2 Juann Else, 1 Alulutho Tshakweni
Replacements: 16 Johan Grobbelaar, 17 Sti Sithole, 18 Khuta Mchunu, 19 Reinhardt Ludwig, 20 Elrigh Louw, 21 Paul de Wet, 22 Katlego Letebele, 23 Hakeem Kunene
Kick-off: 19:00
