Bulls 'doing it for themselves'
Wed, 06 Aug 2008 23:12
One-time Springbok captain Chiliboy Ralepelle, on the comeback trail after an 18-month injury enforced lay-off, has revealed how the Blue Bulls players took their destiny into their own hands in the Currie Cup competition.
The Bulls, top of the Currie Cup standings after five wins from six starts, bounced back from a very poor Super 14 campaign - which saw then finish a lowly 10th on the standings after winning the competition in 2007.
However, with a number of World Cup Springboks being overlooked by new Bok coach Peter de Villiers and a desire to restore the pride in the famous light blue jersey, the Bulls have now set the domestic scene alight.
Ralepelle, who will again be on the bench when the Bulls tackle the Lions in a trans-Jukskei derby on Friday, said it was "fantastic" to be on the field again.
Having fully recovered from the double knee injury that sidelined him since December 2006, when he captained the Boks against a World XV in Leicester, Ralepelle made his first Currie Cup appearance as a second half replacement in the 50-7 victory over the Falcons last Friday.
The Bok hooker said he is not 100 percent fit yet, but he regards himself as "a process that I am working on".
But he will play a key role in the Bulls set-up, as they try to regain the Currie Cup - which they last held in 2006, when they shared it with current champions the Free State Cheetahs.
Having worked their way into first place with a run of four successive victories - including beating the Sharks and Cheetahs - the Bulls are handily placed in the race for play-off places.
"That is what we are here for, to play and win," Ralepelle told rugby365.com.
"The only way you can enjoy it as a player is if you win week-in-and-week-out. And the Bulls decided to step up and do the job between the white lines," he added.
Ralepelle also spoke about the role of Springbok wing Pieter Rossouw, who was appointed backline coach of the Pretoria side at the beginning of the season.
He said the backs in particular are benefiting from the input of Rossouw, a veteran of 43 Bok Tests in which he scored 21 tries. Although Rossouw will probability best remembered for the numerous intercept tries, his creative ability was often understated.
"There is a massive shift in confidence in what they are doing," Ralepelle said of the work being done by Rossouw with the Bulls backs.
However, it is the team as a whole who have stepped up.
"As I said, at the start of the Currie Cup we decided we must do it for ourselves and I can see that coming through now.
"We don't worry about what is going on around us, we are focussing on what we have to do on the field," the hooker added.
By Jan de Koning
