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Pretoria - Having spent more than eight months on the sidelines because of injury, Springbok and Bulls scrumhalf Fourie du Preez has said he is ready to come back from what he described as "the unknown".
"Being out for so long was a bit of an unknown for me, but I've done everything I needed to get back to where I should to be, so we will just have to see how it goes this weekend," said Du Preez who will also captain his team in their second and final warm-up match at the Mbombela stadium in Nelspruit on Saturday.
The Bulls decided not to risk regular skipper Victor Matfield in their second and final warm-up match, after a scan earlier this week revealed that he is still recovering from a neck strain sustained during the Springboks' year-end tour.
"We thought it best that Victor sits this one out, but it is only as a precaution, and he will be back at his post next week when the Vodacom Super Rugby season starts," confirmed Bulls team doctor Org Strauss.
Du Preez admitted that it would have been better to have Matfield there, and that captaincy in the friendly will never be an issue.
"It is never ideal taking over the captaincy in Victor's absence, but it should not be a problem, as the team's leadership core has been together for the last five to six years," said Du Preez.
"The important thing for me this weekend is just to get on the field to see how things go after my shoulder operation, while gaining some confidence for the season.
"I'm really looking forward to getting out there with the boys again, even though I'm not quite sure what to expect."
While he was not able to play, the man considered to be the best scrumhalf in world rugby has never been to far away from the action. He therefore needs no reminder as to the importance of Saturday's outing.
"The most important thing for us is just to get contact-fitness as well as trying out a few things we planned in training."
In contrast to most of the other South African Super Rugby teams, the Bulls have once again decided to limit their game-time ahead of the competition.
Du Preez fails to see how the recipe, which worked in the past, will not be successful this time around.
"We have not performed well in warm-up matches in the past two years, but still managed to start each season well, winning our first five and six games respectively each year," he said.
"Our emphasis is not as much on the result, but more on accomplishing certain goals we have set as a team.
"We had a good off-season and training camp in George, so we feel about the same as we do every year, and we would like to go out there and continue to improve every aspect of our game."
The Bulls take on a Premier XV team consisting mostly of Pumas players on Saturday, before they kick of their Super Rugby campaign against the Lions in Johannesburg the following week.
Teams:
Bulls:
15. Zane Kirchner, 14. Gerhard van den Heever, 13. Stephan Dippenaar, 12. Wynand Olivier, 11. Bjorn Basson, 10. Morne Steyn, 9. Fourie du Preez (captain), 8. Pierre Spies, 7. Dewald Potgieter, 6. Deon Stegmann, 5. Danie Rossouw, 4. Bakkies Botha, 3. Rossouw de Klerk, 2. Gary Botha, 1. Gurthro Steenkamp
Substitutes: Chiliboy Ralepelle, Dean Greyling, Frik Kirsten, Fudge Mabeta, Ruan Snyman, Stefan Watermeyer, Francois Brummer, Akona Ndungane, Gerrit-Jan van Velze, Jaco van der Westhuyzen, Derick Kuun
Premier XV
TBAF
