As the Vodacom Bulls preparations for Super Rugby 2016 gains momentum we focus on some team news.

Rudy Paige has been named as Vice-Captain for the season.

Handré Pollard’s shoulder injury has been confirmed and he will miss the opening weeks of Super Rugby.

Deon Stegmann needs to undergo an operation due to an ankle injury and projections are that he will be out for 9 weeks.

In addition it is believed that Derick Hougaard, also affectionately known as “Liefling”, is going to attempt to make the Bulls team, after years in the wilderness, but he is not in the current Bulls Super Rugby plans… yet.

Rudy Paige – Vice Captain:

Rudy Paige behind the Bulls maul

Springbok scrumhalf Rudy Paige has been elevated to the Vice-Captaincy of the team since news of Handre Pollard’s injury broke.

Paige, who was part of the Springbok squad to the Rugby World Cup and who won his 2 Test caps against Argentina and the USA, will take over the important role in supporting season captain Adriaan Strauss in the Vodacom Super Rugby championship that starts next month.

Pollard was ruled out of the start of the Super Rugby series after aggravating a shoulder injury in his recent stint in Japan and while he will be assessed again after a month’s rehabilitation, the worry is that he is likely to be out for a longer period.

While Francois Brummer will stand in for Pollard at flyhalf, Paige is set to take over the Vice-Captaincy of a very young and inexperienced backline as they face some of the toughest line-ups in world rugby.

With the Vice-Captaincy normally going to a senior backline member, Paige’s chirpy personality and his popularity among his teammates makes him an almost automatic choice, especially with the back-three likely to be playing in their 1st Super Rugby tournament and none of the midfield positions being bolted down by any particular player.

Paige will have some competition for the scrumhalf position from Piet van Zyl, but the former Lions player has made the position his own with a number of good performances in last year’s competition and will head into this season firmly in charge of the scrumhalf position.

The Bulls will put the 1st pieces of their season in place with a team-building tour to Zimbabwe that starts this weekend.

Apart from the pre-season outing against the Toyota Cheetahs on 31 January, the Bulls will also have a team-building weekend in Victoria Falls this coming weekend before heading to Harare to prepare for the game.

Their only other pre-season match will be against the Emirates Lions in Polokwane on 6 February.

The Bulls are set to name the squad for the tour later this week.

Handré Pollard’s injury confirmed:

Handré Pollard

Bulls flyhalf Handre Pollard might miss the opening weeks of the 2016 Super Rugby competition due to a shoulder strain.

This was confirmed by the Blue Bulls Company (Pty) Ltd last Thursday.

Pollard picked up a knock in the Rugby World Cup tournament while playing for the Springboks against Scotland and it was later diagnosed as cartilage damage. He recovered from this, but the injury flared up again while playing club rugby in Japan.

According to the Blue Bulls Company High Performance Manager, Xander Janse van Rensburg, a consultation with a shoulder specialist revealed that the player will need some rest and rehabilitation.

“Handre will undergo a very thorough rehabilitation programme to improve the mobility and strength of the shoulder,” Janse van Rensburg said.

“We will then have another look in 4 weeks. If it becomes clear in this time that the shoulder is not responding to treatment, we will discuss the options of surgery. We are confident though that the decision to rehabilitate the shoulder for now will be the best one and this will hopefully ensure Handre be fit and ready for the 2016 Super Rugby competition.”

The Bulls kick off their Super Rugby campaign against the Stormers in Cape Town on 27 February.

Deon Stegmann to go under the knife:

Deon Stegmann

The Vodacom Bulls were dealt a setback when one of their senior players – Springbok Deon Stegmann – was ruled out of action for 9 weeks because of an ankle injury.

Stegmann will undergo an operation on Monday to repair the damage to the ankle injury and would out for up to 9 weeks.

This is the 2nd blow to the Vodacom Bulls after the news that Springbok Handré Pollard will miss the start of the Vodacom Super Rugby season with a shoulder injury.

Pollard is currently in week 2 of a 4 week rehabilitation programme whereafter his situation will be reassessed and a better idea of the severity of the injury will be known.

But Stegmann in particular is a big blow as the Bulls have few senior players in a very youthful squad and would have needed his leadership skills and experience as the season goes on.

There was some good news though, as both flanker Roelof Smit and hooker Callie Visagie are set to rejoin the team after recovering from their injuries.

Smit, who is likely to be the replacement for Stegmann while he recovers from injury, has recovered from a wrist injury that saw him on the sidelines for 6 months while Visagie has recovered from an operation on his toe in December.

Winger Duncan Matthews will be out for another 3 weeks with a knee strain.

The Bulls are set to name their squad to travel to Zimbabwe in the next few days for next weekend’s pre-season outing against the Cheetahs in Harare.

Derick “Liefling” Hougaard to resume playing with Bulls aspirations:

Derick Hougaard

Former Springbok Derick Hougaard may be planning a comeback but currently he doesn’t feature in the Vodacom Bulls plans for the season.

There was widespread surprise at a report in a Sunday newspaper that said Hougaard, who is also known as the “Liefling” of Loftus, would be seeking to make a comeback and could be playing for the Bulls within 3 months.

The Vodacom Bulls are about to name their pre-season squad for their tour of Zimbabwe and team-building exercise at Victoria Falls, and Hougaard isn’t part of any plans at the moment.

In fact, those quizzed at Loftus Versfeld say there are no plans to include him at all with the team even if he does get the green light to play again.

It seems that Hougaard may well want to play again for the Bulls, but he has not discussed any plans with the Bulls at all.

The report said that Hougaard would be visiting Free State based surgeon Johan Kruger to see if his Achilles tendon injury is over and if it would allow him to take the field again.

“I have that burning desire in my heart to play again,” Hougaard said. “I want my last rugby chapter to be at Loftus. I’m excited about the opportunity to play again, but also realistic about it. I don’t want to put all my hopes on it and be disappointed again if it’s ultimately not possible.

“But I don’t want to regret one day that I didn’t try to make a return. Therefore, I decided to get a 2nd and 3rd opinion on my injury.”

Kruger is the orthopedic surgeon who helped Bok flanker Juan Smith return to action after he was told to retire and it seems Hougaard is pinning his hopes on a positive reaction from this diagnosis.

The Bulls currently have a bit of a crisis over the flyhalf spot with current Springbok pivot Handré Pollard set to miss the start of the season with a shoulder injury.

The union has the services of Francois Brummer, contracted from Griquas last year and Tiaan Schoeman, while Joshua Stander is the next player in line if there are injuries.

But when quizzed over the possibility of Hougaard joining the squad, coach Nollis Marais said he had no knowledge of any such plans.

It seems if Hougaard does overcome the medical concerns, he would have to get himself fit again and find a way of returning through the club system if he is to have a shot at playing Super Rugby again.

While nothing is impossible, there is also a concern about the head trauma that Hougaard had himself tested for last year, where he said the headaches he was suffering from was “a clear sign” that his rugby career was over.

Hougaard was cleared of any head injury after a plethora of tests.

Hougaard tried to make a similar comeback in 2013 but the Bulls made it clear at the time that they could not accommodate him in their Super Rugby plans.

Sport24 & SuperSport