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Bulls wary of 'T-Rex arms' - Marais

Cape Town - The Bulls' 41-22 win over the Reds at Loftus on Saturday was perhaps the closest they have come to the complete performance all season. 

The Bulls ran in five tries - two of which were scored by backline players. 

Coach Nollis Marais was asked at the post-match conference if he was happy with the endeavour shown by his backline.

Marais has been vocal all season on his ambition to embed a more expansive and attacking philosophy into the style of play at Loftus.

But he says that while everyone wants immediate results in terms of attacking intent and entertainment, an element of patience needs to be exercised. 

"We’ve played the same style for seven years," Marais said.

"We said in the beginning we were going to try something different.

"I can be very critical now and say 'you shouldn’t do that' ... but then the guys start not believing in what we want to do and they get stressed … I call it ‘T-Rex’ arms … they don’t want to do anything and they tuck the ball away and they go."

Marais said he had noticed the difference n the field, but that there was still a lot of work to be done. 

"Jan (Serfontein) has always been a player that plays front foot ball, he’s now moving the ball … Jesse (Kriel) is moving the ball … it’s getting better," said Marais.

"There are a lot of work-ons we still have to do but that’s where video sessions are important to see space and understand it.

"The guys are buying into it but it’s a huge work thing and we must stick to it. The Lions have been doing it for a couple of seasons and they are very dangerous on attack."

The Bulls have a bye this week before leaving for Australia on a three-week tour.

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