Lood wants to lead from the front

Springbok lock Lood de Jager may not have been everyone’s favourite to become captain of the Vodacom Bulls this year, but he certainly won’t be a captain that takes a back seat.

De Jager, known to be one of the best straight-talkers in the Bulls team, knows he will have to show why he has been chosen to lead the team, and right now, he wants to be a captain that leads from the front.

There were several other candidates, including new arrivals Schalk Brits, Duane Vermeulen and Springbok Handre Pollard, while last season’s captain Burger Odendaal is also around. But De Jager is keen to show why he was chosen and knows only one way how.

“I haven’t been a captain at many places, so I can’t really tell you what my style is exactly,” De Jager says, “But the captains that I’ve experienced and the ones I’ve played the best under and respected the most are those who have led by example.

“He leads the team with what he does on the field, what he does in practices and in the game. I think talking is nice, but it is the guys who stand up when the chips are down that have been the best captains I’ve played under. I’d like to lead by example and not talk too much either.

“I’ve got a lot of good leaders around me that can chip in whenever they feel it is necessary. I will say something every now and then but you need to show it rather on the field.”

With the new arrivals, and Boks such as Trevor Nyakane, Jason Jenkins and RG Snyman also in the pack, the Bulls are looking to set a decent platform for their backs to perform in Super Rugby.

BACK TO BASICS

And De Jager knows that basis will be crucial to their campaign this year.

“Rugby has changed but not that much. The setpiece will always be important. Your scrums and lineouts need to be good and that will never change. We’re getting a top scrum coach in who I’ve worked with and respect. Anton Leonard was the captain of the Bulls and knows what it takes to be successful but as a pack we need to take responsibility. At the end of the day what happens on the field is important and we need to make sure we are at our best.“I’ve got no doubt that we can give the platform to the backs in Super Rugby, if we can win our lineouts and get the drive going, we can really grow in this season.”

De Jager is also keen to give something back to the fans and believes he wants his year as captain to be known for a Bulls team that plays not only with passion, but shows they are different to Bulls teams’ in the past.

“In the last few years we disappointed the fans in the past few years. Every year there has been the story of having a good team, and this year hopefully we can make people proud.

You can never make promises in terms of winning and losing but we want to show that we will play with pride and intensity. And that there is something different about us this year.”

“We will go out and give everything we can, control what we can and hope the fans come out to support us at Loftus.”

And if he does lead from the front, there are enough that will follow and these Bulls know they only need a spark, something De Jager is hoping to give them.