The Vodacom Blue Bulls have appointed former SA Schools A head coach Phiwe Nomlomo as head coach of their Currie Cup campaign.
After the disaster that was the 2023 campaign, where former hooker Edgar Marutlulle was appointed, but yanked after several matches as results went against the Bulls, prompting Director of Rugby Jake White to take over, Nomlomo will get his chance to take the Bulls into battle.
Nomlomo has been part of the Bulls Vodacom United Rugby Championship coaching staff as skills coach, and will have a strong team of assistants in scrum coach Werner Kruger, defence coach Jean Tiedt and former Zimbabwean flyhalf Kennedy Tsimba.
Nomlomo said he was honoured at the appointment.
“This is more than just an honour; it is carrying the trust of the entire organisation to lead our side in a competition we value and respect because of the influence it has on rugby in our country. It is also another opportunity to compete and showcase the talent we have within our ranks,”
“Our loyal faithful will have the opportunity to see our new recruits in action as rugby enters its traditional winter season. It will be good to play in some of the areas that we don’t visit on a regular basis.”
The Bulls have rested several players who weren’t part of their URC campaign for the start of the competition on 7 July.
And while they completed a warm-up victory over the SA Cup champion team Griquas 28-19 in Polokwane on Wednesday, there is a quick turnaround to the start of the competition. The Bulls also previously beat Western Province in an earlier warm-up match.
“We have a quick turnaround from the URC to the Carling Currie Cup which is a unique kind of pressure for us, one that we enjoy because it means that the franchise is excelling in all competitions,”
“We now need to make sure that everyone in the squad is aligned on what our brand identity is going to be for this campaign and make minor tweaks ahead of the start in a week’s time,”
“We have players who are keen to get on the field, rugby coaches who want to see them do well and a support base who wish to see their club go all the way. This is a wonderful recipe for an exciting season ahead.”
Nomlomo was previously with the Sharks, and also coached the Border Craven Week squad and Selborne College before becoming SA Schools A coach.