Something like… “Keep of the Grass, Butana Komphela plans to smoke it” is happening at Loftus….
The Bulls and Cheetahs could be forced to play their remaining home matches in the Vodacom Super 14 competition elsewhere than at Loftus Versfeld and Vodacom Park – and that could be a financial headache for the Bulls in particular who have to host three crowd-pulling matches against the Lions, Sharks and log-leaders Crusaders over the next three weekends.
The Blue Bulls Company (Pty) Limited CEO Barend van Graan, has to appear before the parliamentary portfolio committee on sport on Tuesday, together with the Free State Rugby Union’s president Harold Verster and the president of the SA Rugby Union (Saru), Oregan Hoskins.
Their appearance before the committee stems from the concerns of the chairman of the parliamentary portfolio committee on sport, Butana Komphela, who has personally inspected the playing pitches at Loftus and Vodacom Park where World Cup soccer matches are to be played and is unhappy about the condition of the surfaces.
Van Graan declined to comment at this stage. However, over and above the loss of income from the three matches that might have to move if Komphela gets his way in denying them the use of Loftus, there is the matter of their thousands of season ticket holders and suite owners who have to be considered. This could lead to a huge refund demanded from the Bulls – and even to possible legal action.
The Bulls’ home field has been described as “Fortress Loftus” where they have now won 15 consecutive matches – and losing this ally will be a major blow in their quest to successfully defend their title.
As it is, the Bulls have already made contingency plans should they qualify for a home semifinal and final. Those games will be played at the Orlando Stadium in Soweto.
The situation with the Free State Rugby Union, whose Cheetahs franchise will also be affected in three home matches, is less serious. They will not stand to lose nearly as much as the Bulls.
The Cheetahs are second to last on the log; they do not draw the numbers the Bulls do; they have less season ticket holders affected; and they don’t stand to lose tens of millions from home play-offs.
Whether Komphela will be able to enforce his wish is still debatable, as the World Cup local organising committee has an agreement with Saru that the scheduled Super 14 games could go ahead and that the unions had will hand over the stadiums in good condition by May 20.
Hoskins confirmed they have to appear before the parliamentary portfolio committee on sport. “I have asked the Bulls and Cheetahs to get expert opinions on their respective pitches, so we can present it in Parliament,” was all Hoskins was prepared to say.
Surely, if rugby can be played on that pitch at Loftus, then the Sissyboy-soccer-poofball round-ball games can be played there too, in fact a pitch takes much less punishment in soccer than with rugby.
Don’t bend down Barend van Graan, stand strong… let the freegin soccer fraternity concern themselves more with soccer matches, the state of Bafana Bafana’s readiness and aspects like the low occupancy rates (1%) in Durban Hotels during the Soccer World Cup, the State of our roads during the Soccer World Cup, the chaos at our Airports.
60@ Pam Anderson – Because I really do not want to see your “Left Nipple”….
61—-not mine, hers.
Nothing offensive about that — ask anyone if they find her left (or right even) nipple offensive.
62@ Pam – What can I say, I’m trying to keep the site decent… Having a NICK which says “Pam Anderson’s Left Nipple” is OK with me and a lot here but you’ll be surprized to see who reads here!
62— how about her port side areola?
I am sure worse things are said here!
Or is it a case of a blue bull still seeing red?
geez but the bloody net is slow today.
TPC errors (WTF are they anyway?)every 5 mins!!
64@ Pam – Let’s rather find out who you support all the way from Muddy Isle…
I see blue because it’s such a beautiful colour…
65@ Pam – No errors here, everything running fine this side, no TCP errors either.
66—must still have blue eyes from the beating.
Been following WP for a couple of years.
Don’t like the bulls — a different colour Man U in a different code.
Hope WP becomes the Chelsea to them.
Pam,just as a matter of interest are you male or female with a name like that?
66—dunno what it is…gives me other crap like site being down too.
How do you know I come from the muddy isle?
68@ Pam – The beating at the hands of the Reds was a good performance from the Reds and a bad one by the Bulls, hope the Bulls learn from the experience.
70 @ Pam – I just know…. I’m that good!
Winston—the name was actually Pam Anderson’s port side areola (too keep it PC) and I would hate to think that a lady would call herself that.
71 —- and if the Lions manage a similar performance? That would almost be as funny as Portsmouth making the FA Cup final whilst being relegated…lol.
72—haven’t been there for a while, hence the surprise.
Anyway, got to get some food.
Later perhaps.
74@ Pam – The Lions will give their all, of that I’m sure.
75@ Pam – Cheers, yip later. Hope to see what you know about rugby.
Let me say something of the SWC.
What is the odds on the Bafana, and where can i risk a few bucks.
Then the roads, eish we could do better. The main roads to the Kruger is in a bad state. The nearer you get to Mozambique the more at home you feel.
Lions will come hard at Bulls but they will be more clinical than the Sharks and put 50 on the Board and win by 15-20 points.. Sharks threw many tries away on Saturday.
Super,you have more chance of falling pregnant than South Africa getting to the second round let alone winning the World Cup..
80@ Winnie – That’s what I though as well, and that’s why I staked 2 bottles of KWV Roodeberg on it with Fender and Asbak….. check the 1st 50 comments…
Think its a safe bet Gbs.. South African soccer is a joke.. I think we are about number 90 in the world,dont think we’ll be in another football world cup after this for a long time..
Guys we position all the vuvuzelas behind the posts, and blow up a storm keeping the ball out, easy , see.
We will need to hand of God to help us Super 🙂
84@ Winnie – Or a moooooooooooooooosa lot of Vuvuzelas. Neewat, no chance!
84
That hand will steal the ball this time
Bulls: 9 + 8 + 4 + 7 + 6+ 10 + 14 + 8 + 12 = 78
Above are the penalties the Bulls conceded this year
Pick the games where Joubert reffed.
Stormers: 11 + 12 + 12 + 10 + 6 + 10 + 13 + 9 + 7 = 90
Penalties per match
Puma @ 48
Best plan i heard all day. 😆
How the Reds mastered art of war to behead the Bulls
SPIRO ZAVOS
April 20, 2010
ANALYSIS
An aphorism taken from The Art of War, a textbook of tactics and theories on how to wage war successfully written by Sun Tzu, a fourth-century BC military strategist, reads: “All battles are won before they are fought.” On Saturday, the Queensland Reds coach Ewen McKenzie produced a game plan to defeat the frontrunning Bulls straight out of the Sun Tzu manual.
The Bulls have bullied their way to the top of the Super 14 table. They rely on lineout steals by Victor Matfield to prevent sides mounting pressure on them inside their own half. They drive and maul from lineouts to force penalties. Their goal-kicker, Morne Steyn, consistently belts over penalties and conversions from all parts of the field. They kick a lot of high balls to force penalty shots or handling errors which their big forwards, Pierre Spies particularly, exploit with hard-shouldered, barging assaults.
Until last Saturday, only the Blues had been able to crack this predictable but winning Bulls method. They did it by smashing the Bulls in the forwards. But with a relatively young pack containing no Test players, this tactic was not open to the Reds. Instead, they adopted a high-tempo, ball-in-hand method that involved running the Bulls into the ground. Kick-offs were received and then run out from the 22. High balls were caught and run back. Kicks were kept to a minimum – just 15 in the match.
There was some subtlety in the game plan, too, Will Genia probing the blindside with powerful runs and sweetly delivered passes. This left the wider open side to be exploited by Quade Cooper’s long passing and clever running. From time to time, too, the Reds forwards surged on pick-and-go plays that sapped the strength of the Bulls.
“Opportunities multiply when they are seized.” The Bulls were forced to make tackles in all parts of the field and to chase the ball endlessly. They became very tired in this battle with 15 matadors. When Steyn had a relatively easy shot (for him) at goal right on half-time to grab back the lead, he was so exhausted from running, he shanked the ball. The usually faultless Fourie du Preez made mistakes at halfback under pressure. Spies did not make one breakout run. An exhausted Bulls pack got a lineout call wrong, the Reds poached a steal and fast hands put speedster Rod Davies away in the corner.
“Invincibility lies in defence.” This Sun Tzu aphorism has been embraced by the Stormers, a team that demolished the Chiefs in Hamilton with a huge display of running and defensive rugby. The Stormers have the best defence, conceding 11 tries in nine matches, and 111 points all up, the fewest of any team. The Crusaders with 167 and the Reds with 183 are the only other teams to have given up fewer than the Hurricanes’ 212. The Reds play the Stormers (rated by Graham Henry as the best team in the tournament) in Brisbane on Friday night. It will require a different game plan to that used against the Bulls. The Stormers have Bryan Habana on the wing feasting on interceptions when opponents play expansively. Andries Bekker, a 208cm second-rower, dominates lineouts and is a force around the field.
“Know your enemy.” How the Reds attempt to counter the Stormers will be an intriguing study, as will the Stormers’ plan for the Reds. One of the features of the Super 14 this season, in my opinion, has been the generally uninspired tactical coaching, aside from the Reds, Bulls, Stormers and Crusaders. The Waratahs, a side studded with Wallabies, have muddled through to fifth place. On Saturday night against the lacklustre Brumbies at the ANZ Stadium, they have the chance to re-ignite their season with some smart and effective play. “The general who wins the battle makes many calculations in his temple before the battle begins.”
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