Kriel-Odendaal pair up in midfield for Bulls
Vodacom Bulls coach Nollis Marais has named Jesse Kriel and Burger Odendaal in the midfield of his team to face the Jaquares in Buenos Aires on Saturday.
The coach also named Renaldo Bothma on the bench, with the flanker looking for a first appearance in the Bulls jersey.
The Vodacom Bulls are the only South African team that the Jaguares are yet to play against and according to Marais, they know what to expect.
"To play in Buenos Aires is something new for us, but we already know what to expect from the home side. They will be physical, will be coming at us at a thousand miles an hour and will be looking to caught us napping. We must be ready for anything," Marais said.
"We also need to make sure we are part of the contest from the first minute."
The Vodacom Bulls have missed just 14.8 tackles per game this season, the fewest of any team, and boast the best tackle success rate (88%) so far this season and according to Lappies Labuschagne, who will captain the team in the absence of Adriaan Strauss, they will have to improve on that if they want to be successful.
"We will have to play as a unit and play for each other. IF we do, we will have a chance to win,” he said.
The team is: SP Marais, Travis Ismaiel, Jesse Kriel, Burger Odendaal, Jamba Ulengo, Francois Brummer, Rudy Paige, Arno Botha, Lappies Labuschagne (c), Roelof Smit, Marvin Orie, Jason Jenkins, Marcel van der Merwe, Bandise Maku, Lizo Gqoboka.
Replacements: Jaco Visagie, Pierre Schoeman, Werner Kruger, Jannes Kirsten, Renaldo Bothma, Piet van Zyl, Tian Schoeman, Dries Swanepoel.
SA Time: 23h40
Venue: Velez Sarsfield, Buenos Aires
Referee: Craig Joubert (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Federico Anselmi (Argentina), Juan Sylvestre (Argentina)
TMO: Santiago Borsani (Argentina)