Experienced trio back in Bulls' pink
The Bulls have recalled experienced midfielder Wynand Olivier, loose forward Dewald Potgieter and prop Dean Greyling for Saturday's Super Rugby clash against the Highlanders in Dunedin.
The match in the Forsyth Barr Stadium will see Morné Steyn becoming the sixth player from the franchise to play 100 Super Rugby matches.
Olivier replaces Francois Venter and Potgieter comes in for injured Deon Stegmann from the side that beat the Waratahs in Sydney last week, having both been declared fit for the match. Greyling returns to the side after he missed the Waratahs clash due to paternity leave and replaces Dawie Steyn.
Potgieter joined the squad on Sunday after recovering from a hamstring strain and Olivier was rested against the 'Tahs in order to recover from bruised ribs.
The Bulls will play in the Forsyth Barr Stadium for the first time and arrive in Dunedin as overall log leaders, something that would spur on the opposition, Bulls coach Frans Ludeke believes.
"We worked hard to be on top of the log, but the reality is that teams will be coming harder at us than before," Ludeke said.
"The Highlanders had two disappointing results in their last outings and will come out to knock us over, no doubt. We have picked up good momentum from our Australian leg of our tour and can welcome back three experienced campaigners, so if we focus on our own game and play to our strengths, we will be competitive."
Ludeke was pleased for Steyn to reach another milestone in his career.
"He [Steyn] is such a humble person and the ultimate team player. I know that he would prefer a win on the day as the best form of celebration for this fantastic achievement," Ludeke explained.
Steyn commented: "This will be a great day for me, but the result will always come first. I have a certain task to do in the team environment and we play together as a team, so it should not be about me.
"It is great to reach 100 games and I will be the first Bulls player to achieve this milestone playing in pink," the 27-year-old joked.
Steyn will also lead the team onto the field in their first game back at Loftus Versfeld on June 2 against the Stormers.
"It is nice to know that someone like Wynand Olivier, who is also close to his century, will be there to share this with me," he said.
Bulls: 15 Zane Kirchner, 14 Akona Ndungane, 13 Johann Sadie, 12 Wynand Olivier, 11 Bjorn Basson, 10 Morné Steyn, 9 Francois Hougaard, 8 Pierre Spies (captain), 7 CJ Stander, 6 Dewald Potgieter, 5 Juandré Kruger, 4 Flip van der Merwe, 3 Werner Kruger, 2 Chiliboy Ralepelle, 1 Dean Greyling.
Replacements: 16 Willie Wepener, 17 Rayno Gerber, 18 Wilhelm Steenkamp, 19 Arno Botha, 20 Jano Vermaak, 21 Louis Fouché, 22 JJ Engelbrecht.
Date: Saturday, May 19
Venue: Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
Kick-off: 17.30 (05.30 GMT)
Referee: Ian Smith (Australia)
Assistant referees: Garratt Williamson (New Zealand), Kane McBride (New Zealand)
TMO: Matthew Muir (New Zealand)