Joubert keeps cards close to his chest

FNB Pukke coach Rudy Joubert is keeping his cards close to his chest as the Men from Potchefstroom prepare for their FNB Varsity Cup presented by Steinhoff International semifinal against the FNB Ikeys next Monday afternoon.

Pukke recorded a morale-boosting 17-13 win over the same opponents this past Monday - a victory that will help considering they now have to travel to Cape Town and contend with the nasty wind at Groote Schuur.

Still, however, it was not all satisfaction for Pukke mentor Joubert, who is in his first year of Varsity Cup action.

"At first the guys felt a tad disappointed that we didn't get the four tries we believed we could get," the experienced coach admitted to varsitycup.co.za.

Joubert, however, told this website last week that his charges' first aim would have been to secure the victory at all costs.

Well, they duly did - in order to secure that semifinal - and that fact certainly did not escape him.

"Nonetheless, I thought we played some pretty decent rugby on Monday," he added.

"One has to give Ikeys credit for being one of the best teams in the competition and any win against them is a good one."

According to Joubert, preparations for Monday's clash "were going very smoothly", except for one setback - replacement flyhalf Dewan Eckhard will not be considered for selection due to injury.

But the biggest intrigue remains the gameplan the Men from the North West will employ come next Monday...

They showed this past week that they can stick to a structured approach, where one maul led to a try for prop BJ Uys although it did seem that they might have milked the tactic too much.

If one casts one's mind back to Week Five, when they met FNB UJ, they outscored their Johannesburg rivals by three tries to just three penalties. FNB TUT were also not spared in a merciless drubbing of 58-14, where Pukke played some sparkling attacking rugby. It is thus anyone's guess, which Puk side will show up in Cape Town.

All that Joubert would reveal is "that we are looking to surprise everyone with our play", in a rather mischievous tone.

To see what Rudy Joubert has in store, the only option will be to watch that will - without a doubt - be a tight and exciting game of rugby.

Kick-off at Groote Schuur is 4.45pm and the match will be broadcast live on SuperSport One.

By Heinz Schenk