Bok flank addresses Bulls' 'rough patch'
SPOTLIGHT: Springbok and Bulls flank Nizaam Carr says they are not going to let one horrible result derail their campaign as their focus shifts from the Champions Cup to the United Rugby Championship this week.
The team from Pretoria have produced some inconsistent performances over the last two months and their last fixture, which was against Lyon in the Champions Cup, is cause for concern.
The Bulls were outplayed in freezing conditions and they eventually fell to a 7-31 defeat in that match.
Despite the result, the Bulls qualified for the Round of 16 in Europe where they will face French giants Toulouse.
"We are carrying a lot of confidence with us," said Carr.
"I know last week didn’t go our way, but one performance does not define us as a group.
"We were going through a little bit of a rough patch over the last three or four weeks, but we are playing and training with a lot of confidence.
"Yes, there was a difficult hurdle to overcome last week, but we are ready and we are excited and we are looking forward to Friday night's game [against Scarlets in Llanelli].
"Yes we are hurting, we didn’t want to go down like that. That is too small of a situation to kill our character and our confidence in the team."
One concern for the Bulls ahead of that fixture against the Scarlets in the URC, is their form away from home.
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On the road
They have only won one of their last five away games in all competitions.
"I wouldn’t say it's a concern, but we have been talking about it," Carr explained.
"It is something we are addressing. The camaraderie among the boys - on the field and off the field - is really tight and I think it will turn around for us.
"I think we are working extremely hard - we are focusing on different plans on how to tackle these things.
"We are not going away from what we do best.
"I know we have been challenged in the last couple of weeks with our forward pack not being that dominant.
"Touring is a tough thing for every team. You need to start well when you are playing and the first 10 or 20 minutes in the second half is the most important because that is when teams get under your skin or your discipline is not there after that break.
"These are all things that we are looking at.
"I wouldn't say we are not a good team away from home. The way we prepare, and the way we are planning is exactly the same as when we are at home.
"We are adding another string to our bow on how to tackle these things, especially when we are on tou. We are doing everything we can to get the win."
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