Only Canan Moodie and Sergeal Petersen have yet to return to the field, but are expected back in two weeks.
Bulls coach Johan Ackermann said that, despite some concerns in his backline, he was pleased to name a strong and cohesive team at this crucial stage of the season.
The Bulls enjoy the return of Springbok stars Wilco Louw and Kurt-Lee Arendse, and Junior Bok world champion Cheswill Jooste for their 16th-round United Rugby Championship clash with Scarlets in Llanelli on Saturday (kick-off 8.45pm).
The Bulls are eighth on the log with three games left before the play-offs. But with relatively easy fixtures against Scarlets (14th), Zebre (16th) and Benetton (13th) left, they are expected to vie for a place in the top four.
The Lions currently hold fourth spot, just three points ahead of the Bulls. They have much harder games, hosting Connacht before travelling to previous winners Leinster and Munster.
Bulls stars return
The Pretoria union is missing Springbok flyer Canan Moodie (hamstring) and Sergeal Petersen (HIA), though Ackermann hopes they will be back for Zebre after next week’s break in games.
“We started to test and treat Canan here from Tuesday but with the run yesterday, there were still signs that he is not 100%. Where we are in the season, it is too high a risk to push anything further,” Ackermann said.
Wing Sebastian de Klerk will only be back later in the year as he requires multiple surgeries for a serious foot injury.
The Bulls coach backed Arendse and Jooste to slot into the side seamlessly despite being injured playing Glasgow Warriors in the Champions Cup last-16 three weeks ago.
“It’s great to have the quality of those wings coming back. I know Cheswill is early in his career, but he’s proven he can play at this level.
“We understand he’s a young guy and there will be mistakes. That is fine. There are enough senior players around him to support him.
“And Kurt-Lee is world-class. He came back from the Boks having a sore knee and then one or two niggles. We have seen in these players who have world-class ability, they don’t need a lot of games to get back to their best.”
Ackermann was also happy to have Louw back after the loss of his father. “We know what he is capable of,” he said of last year’s URC SA player of the year nominee.
All about the log
The Bulls coach said Scarlets were still a strong team despite being in the bottom half of the log.
“They are one of the best sides in scoring tries when in the 22. Good set-piece, a lot of X-factor players. We need to be at our best and pick the strongest side possible.”
Ackermann said the team was not too concerned with trying to win their first game in Llanelli after two previous defeats. That would simply be a bonus to climbing the log.
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