The Vodacom Bulls believe their recent hard-fought success on the overseas tour, winning both their matches to stop the seven-game losing streak they were on, puts them more or less where they were last season when a similar two game tour gave them the momentum to get to the Vodacom United Rugby Championship final.
The Bulls went on a “special tour” - their words - last season to post back to back wins against Munster and Glasgow Warriors, something that solidified the comradery in the side and took them all the way to the final.
While nobody is suggesting they can do the same yet from their ninth position on the log, last weekend’s captain Marcell Coetzee believes the tour sorted out a lot of things and put them into the same headspace as last season. Their back-to-back wins against French side Pau and Scottish side Edinburgh rescued their Investec Champions Cup campaign and got them back on track in the URC.
The SA Shield is as tight as it's ever been at the halfway mark of the #VURC season 🇿🇦🏆 pic.twitter.com/6vsXn9xtTW
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) January 28, 2026
And Coetzee believes the feeling is the same as when they posted similar wins last season.
“I think every win on tour is so special, and if you manage to get two in a row and as you mentioned on that tour, what it does for the group is immense,” Coetzee said.
“But I'm saying that you have to use that same synergy, what you build up on back at home. Everyone is back at home back again with the family, so I think the biggest drive for us as leaders and the team is to continue that kind of great morale that we have ongoing.
The Lions have never beaten the Vodacom Bulls in the #VURC at home ❌
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) January 27, 2026
But they did win at Loftus in November. Can they do the double in the Derby? 🦁 pic.twitter.com/6iareXS3a2
“If you're a happy team off the field, the results will show it on the field.I think we managed to get that right on tour, but it's important to continue driving that culture.”
Coetzee is very aware though of the threat posed by the Lions and says the Bulls will have to be at their best if they are to get the win they need.
“ I think with the derby game, any derby game in South Africa, it's kind of like a reset button, you know, because both teams really get up for it. Your previous record doesn't really matter, it's on the day which team pitches up and uses the opportunity.
"We put our reset button in motion now and it's all about preparing now for the best against this Lions side because, like you say, they had our number the previous game and something we're looking to rectify.”
Coetzee believes the derby games can bring the best out of any player.
“I think with these derby games it will bring out the best out of any player going on the pitch on the day, and taking on the Lions side, how they've grown immensely over these past seasons, and how maturely they approach things on the pitch and stuff.
"They're a tight group, you can see that, a full 80-minute team. So it's going to have to be a buy-in from everyone in the group, the starters and the guys on the bench if we want to pull this one through, because it's always tough playing the Lions at Ellis Park, they really get up for it.
“They're a proud union. I think motivation won't be a problem for the group.”
The Bulls will name their side on Friday morning for Saturday’s clash.