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Cape Town - John Mitchell is confident that the new philosophy he's instilled at the Bulls will reap rewards.
Mitchell was earlier this year appointed as the Bulls’ executive of rugby, but he will also fulfil the coaching duties of the Super Rugby team.
After a torrid start to the Blue Bulls’ Currie Cup campaign, Mitchell took over as Currie Cup coach from Nollis Marais, before leading them to the semi-finals where they lost to the Sharks in Durban.
The New Zealander is hard at work for next year’s Super Rugby competition and calls his methodology WTP (Weekly Tactical Periodisation).
The aim of this philosophy is to produce strong and fit players who can play at a high tempo for long periods.
“The onus and responsibility rests on the players. They have a choice between SOAR (Standards Ownership Accountability Responsibility) or BED (Blame Excuses Denial). The choice is the players’. The system is based on facts and we use GPS information to give objective feedback to the players,” Mitchell said in an interview with Netwerk24.
Mitchell said it's important for his players to be happy - on and off the field.
The aim is to play “attractive and winning rugby” and hopefully lure fans back to Loftus Versfeld.
Mitchell has a tough task at hand as the Bulls won only four of 15 games in this year’s Super Rugby competition.
It saw them finish second from bottom in the South African Group, with only the Sunwolves below them.
The Bulls have a bye when Super Rugby starts on February 17 next year, with their first match scheduled against the Hurricanes in Pretoria the following weekend (February 24).
