Former Springbok and Vodacom Bulls coach Jake White has backed his former team to break their duck in Vodacom United Rugby Championship Grand Finals in Dublin on Friday night.
White, who led the Bulls to three finals in four years, all without success, believes this Bulls side is now stronger than ever and better equipped to break the duck.
The former Bulls coach was speaking on the RTE podcast in Ireland, ahead of the Bulls showdown with defending champions’ Leinster, the same team that beat his Bulls side last year and where his comments were a big part of him parting ways with the team afterwards. White said after the final that he didn’t have the squad and the players weren’t good enough, comments that - rightly or wrongly - irked players enough to stage a rebellion.
"Last year we played without five of the players that will start this week, and five of those players are Kurt-Lee Arendse, Gerhard Steenekamp, Handré Pollard, who would make the starting 23 on any given test day.
"And then you've got Elrigh Louw and Cameron Hanekom. We know how good they are, and they have been. They’re both internationals, they didn't play last year. I've got no doubt the Bulls are better equipped [this year].
"And because they're a year wiser, a year older. And they've been there."
White had a lot of compliments for Leinster, who have been under criticism for losing the Investec Champions’ Cup final against Bordeaux.
"There is no doubt Leinster are the benchmark for any provincial side," White reminded.
"Leinster, they are always up there in the European Cup games and always up there in the play-offs. I’ve said it many times and sometimes to my detriment that Leinster are one of the clubs [that you admire]. It’s like football, you want to be Barcelona.
"You want to be the top club in the world and you don’t want to be just another club. Leinster, the last few years, have been that. Some of the highlights of my coaching career have been able to beat sides like Leinster in Leinster. I know how tough it is.
"A lot of the Leinster players have beaten the All Blacks, they have beaten the Springboks."
But despite that White is hoping for a Bulls win.
"It’s crazy. We always talk about, as ex-players, 'if only I had one more chance to play one more time'.
"I’m hoping the Bulls understand they are not going to get many more opportunities. I said that to the players in the team-talk before last year’s final. Here they are a year later back in the final.
"I think the message would be clear, they’ve got to take this chance. The stars have aligned from a point of view that they have all their star players fit and available.
"I've seen lots of teams get to different finals and never win it. There's no right, in other words, to actually win a final. You have to play well.
"I know how good Leinster can be when they're on song. You have to play well to beat Leinster."