Pretoria - Bulls coach Frans Ludeke has brought Springbok centre JJ Engelbrecht back into his starting line-up for their Super Rugby clash against the Stormers at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday (19:10 kick-off).
Engelbrecht, who was dropped for last week's clash against the Cheetahs, replaces William Small-Smith, who moves to the bench for the north/south derby. It is the only change to the squad which beat the Cheetahs 26-21.
Meanwhile, prop Dean Greyling will play in his 50th Super Rugby match for the Bulls.
Greyling, who made his debut for the men in blue against the Lions in 2008, will again line-up in a front row that will also consist of Callie Visagie (hooker) and Marcel van der Merwe (tighthead) as Ludeke retained his starting pack for the clash.
Victor Matfield will again lead the side as Flip van der Merwe serves his last week of suspension.
According to the veteran lock, who will play in his 135th Super Rugby match, the Bulls must maintain the momentum they picked up in the second half of the match against the Cheetahs.
"We kept our composure and stuck to our structures, something we will need to do again against the Stormers. They have shown some decent form in the last couple of weeks and are playing without fear, which makes them dangerous opponents. As is the norm with local derbies, it will be a physical affair and the challenge for us will be to remain calm and not get sucked into the match they want us to play," said Matfield.
Teams:
Bulls:
15. Jurgen Visser, 14. Akona Ndungane, 13. JJ Engelbrecht, 12. Jan Serfontein, 11. Bjorn Basson, 10. Handré Pollard, 9. Francois Hougaard, 8. Grant Hattingh, 7. Jacques du Plessis, 6. Jono Ross, 5. Victor Matfield (captain), 4. Paul Willemse, 3. Marcel van der Merwe, 2. Callie Visagie, 1. Dean Greyling
Substitutes: 16. Bongi Mbonambi, 17. Werner Kruger, 18. Morné Mellett, 19. Jacques Engelbrecht, 20. Wimpie van der Walt, 21. Rudy Paige, 22. Jacques-Louis Potgieter, 23. William Small-Smith
Stormers:
15. Jaco Taute, 14. Damian de Allende, 13. Juan de Jongh, 12. Peter Grant,11. Cheslin Kolbe, 10. Kurt Coleman, 9. Nic Groom, 8. Duane Vermeulen, 7. Schalk Burger (captain), 6. Nizaam Carr, 5. Ruan Botha, 4. Jean Kleyn, 3. Pat Cilliers, 2. Scarra Ntubeni, 1. Brok Harris
Substitutes:16. Stephan Coetzee, 17. Alistair Vermaak, 18. Martin Dreyer, 19. Siya Kolisi, 20. Deon Fourie, 21. Dylon Frylinck, 22. Michael van der Spuy, 23. Devon Williams
Engelbrecht, who was dropped for last week's clash against the Cheetahs, replaces William Small-Smith, who moves to the bench for the north/south derby. It is the only change to the squad which beat the Cheetahs 26-21.
Meanwhile, prop Dean Greyling will play in his 50th Super Rugby match for the Bulls.
Greyling, who made his debut for the men in blue against the Lions in 2008, will again line-up in a front row that will also consist of Callie Visagie (hooker) and Marcel van der Merwe (tighthead) as Ludeke retained his starting pack for the clash.
Victor Matfield will again lead the side as Flip van der Merwe serves his last week of suspension.
According to the veteran lock, who will play in his 135th Super Rugby match, the Bulls must maintain the momentum they picked up in the second half of the match against the Cheetahs.
"We kept our composure and stuck to our structures, something we will need to do again against the Stormers. They have shown some decent form in the last couple of weeks and are playing without fear, which makes them dangerous opponents. As is the norm with local derbies, it will be a physical affair and the challenge for us will be to remain calm and not get sucked into the match they want us to play," said Matfield.
Teams:
Bulls:
15. Jurgen Visser, 14. Akona Ndungane, 13. JJ Engelbrecht, 12. Jan Serfontein, 11. Bjorn Basson, 10. Handré Pollard, 9. Francois Hougaard, 8. Grant Hattingh, 7. Jacques du Plessis, 6. Jono Ross, 5. Victor Matfield (captain), 4. Paul Willemse, 3. Marcel van der Merwe, 2. Callie Visagie, 1. Dean Greyling
Substitutes: 16. Bongi Mbonambi, 17. Werner Kruger, 18. Morné Mellett, 19. Jacques Engelbrecht, 20. Wimpie van der Walt, 21. Rudy Paige, 22. Jacques-Louis Potgieter, 23. William Small-Smith
Stormers:
15. Jaco Taute, 14. Damian de Allende, 13. Juan de Jongh, 12. Peter Grant,11. Cheslin Kolbe, 10. Kurt Coleman, 9. Nic Groom, 8. Duane Vermeulen, 7. Schalk Burger (captain), 6. Nizaam Carr, 5. Ruan Botha, 4. Jean Kleyn, 3. Pat Cilliers, 2. Scarra Ntubeni, 1. Brok Harris
Substitutes:16. Stephan Coetzee, 17. Alistair Vermaak, 18. Martin Dreyer, 19. Siya Kolisi, 20. Deon Fourie, 21. Dylon Frylinck, 22. Michael van der Spuy, 23. Devon Williams