Vodacom Bulls director of rugby Jake White has warned his squad that Sunday’s Heineken Champions Cup Round of 16 trip to Stade Toulousain will be “a massive task”.
South Africa’s 2007 World Cup-winning coach knows what he is talking about too, having led Montpellier Hérault Rugby between 2014 and 2017.
He said: “I’ve coached in France and it doesn’t get any tougher. Generally, people use that phrase quite often, but it doesn’t get any tougher than playing Toulouse in a knockout game in Toulouse. If you look at the Champions Cup historically, that’s one of the strongest home-beds of European rugby.
“So, it’s going to be a massive task for us and it’s going to be an opportunity to measure ourselves against some of the best players in the world.
“It’s no use lagging on things that we can’t change – you can only move forward. I said earlier to someone that it’s a great test even of my coaching. I’ve been coaching for a long time and it’s a great test for us as a group and for me as a coach as well.
“These young guys have done well over the last couple of years, but they’re in a place that they haven’t been for a while. It’s going to be a great learning thing for all of us to see how we can get it right.”
The Vodacom Bulls and Toulouse clash is set for 16h00pm on Sunday 02 April 2023, broadcast on SuperSport Rugby in South Africa and the Rest of the African Continent. The Pretoria outfit will have the opportunity to play for a quarterfinal berth which will either be against fellow South African side, the Cell C Sharks (Durban) or Munster (Ireland) during the weekend of 7-9 April 2023.
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