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Bulls defense coach Joey Mongalo addresses his troops
- The Bulls’ steady improvement on defense suggests new specialist coach Joey Mongalo’s methods are taking root.
- Influential scrum half Ivan van Zyl notes that the former Lions assistant has brought “energy” and “passion” to his portfolio.
- The six-chapel Springbok also points out that defense will have to be the cornerstone of the team if they want to fight for a trophy.
It’s still early, however, Jake White will be encouraged by signs that his Bulls charges are consistently adopting the methods of defense coach Joey Mongalo.
Last weekend’s excellent 41-14 victory over the Sharks not only marked an improvement in the team’s shooting ability, but also an aggressive and at times clinical approach.
It’s a trend that should continue in Saturday’s traditional North-South derby against the Stormers at Loftus if White’s managers are to continue their quest to end a trophy drought.
According to statistics provided by Opta, the Bulls rank third in tackles completed at 85.2%, just 1.4% behind the Sharks, the trendsetters.
That’s not a statistic to scoff at given that the local rugby resumption is only five weeks old and Mongalo, like White and co, are new to the Loftus setup.
“Coach Joey has been great for us,” Bulls scrum half Ivan van Zyl said of the former Lions guru.
“He brings great energy. He loves what he does and that passion comes through in his guidance. That obviously rubs off on us. You need coaches like that.”
“To be honest, the basics haven’t necessarily changed, but it’s been great that he’s brought a new perspective and that’s exciting. He wants to learn and improve, and so do we.”
The Bulls’ record has improved to such an extent that they have only conceded two attempts in the past two weeks against consummate attacking units in the Cheetahs and Sharks.
As Van Zyl points out, those are the kinds of numbers that can beat a team in a tournament.
“We are very happy. Last week we scored six attempts and only conceded one. It is the ‘ideal’ combination of statistics for any team after a game,” said Springbok with six cap.
“In the end, defense is what makes you more consistent overall and gives you more chances to win. As a team, that’s something we will continue to be proud of and work hard on.
“The Stormers will definitely bring a different challenge in this regard, so we’ll have to be precise. But we’re relying on the game given how well we defended against the Sharks. It’s a good platform to work on.”
The start in Pretoria is at 19:00.
