All Blacks vs Bulls: Codie Taylor Captains at Loftus

All Blacks vs Bulls: Codie Taylor Captains at Loftus

Pretoria is buzzing. The streets around Loftus Versfeld are filling with blue-clad supporters, the smell of boerewors hanging in the Highveld air, and a sense that something special is brewing for Saturday night’s clash between the Vodacom Bulls and the All Blacks. This is not just another pre-season friendly. This is the final stop on the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour before the All Blacks head to Ellis Park for the first Test against the Springboks. And the tourists have brought their big guns, led by a centurion finally getting his moment in the captain’s armband. Codie Taylor returns from a calf injury to lead the All Blacks for the first time in his 110th Test match. It is a proud moment for the veteran hooker, who has been the tour captain but has had to watch from the sidelines during the opening wins over the Stormers and Sharks. Now, at the formidable fortress of Loftus Versfeld, he gets his chance to lead his country. Kick-off is at 19:00, and with tickets still available from R250 to R1,350, the 50,000-capacity stadium is expected to be rocking. The Bulls, without their current Springboks, have named a side dripping with experience and capped international quality. Coach Johan Ackermann is not here to make up the numbers. He is here to cause an upset.

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Taylor’s Moment: A Centurion Leads the Way

There is something poetic about Codie Taylor captaining the All Blacks in his 110th Test, in a stadium as intimidating as Loftus Versfeld. The man has done it all in black — World Cups, Bledisloe Cups, Rugby Championships — but this is his first time leading the side onto the field. All Blacks head coach Dave Rennie had nothing but praise for his skipper. “Huge congratulations to Codie on his first All Blacks captaincy. He is a top man and has done a great job leading this tour group. This is a proud moment for an All Blacks centurion who has made a massive contribution to this team as a player and a leader,” Rennie said. Taylor missed Tuesday’s 54-0 demolition of the Sharks in Durban and the opening 38-21 win over the Stormers in Cape Town. His return adds a massive boost to a side that has been mixing and matching throughout the tour. Props Xavier Numia and Tyrel Lomax will also play their first match of the tour, adding further starch to the pack. Rennie has made wholesale changes to his starting XV. Six players from the side that thrashed the Sharks 54-0 retain their places in the matchday 23 — lock Josh Lord, loose forward Wallace Sititi, halfbacks Kyle Preston and Cortez Ratima, midfielder Timoci Tavatavanawai and outside back Emoni Narawa — with Ratima keeping his starting berth at scrumhalf and the other five providing impact from the bench. The starting XV is a formidable one. Beauden Barrett starts at fullback, with Rieko Ioane and Anton Lienert-Brown forming a world-class midfield combination. Josh Jacomb gets the nod at flyhalf, with Cortez Ratima at scrumhalf. The loose trio of Peter Lakai, Anton Segner, and Simon Parker is new-look but explosive. “The Bulls have consistently been South Africa’s best franchise side, making the United Rugby Championship finals in four of the last five years,” Rennie acknowledged. “Loftus Versfeld is one of the most formidable rugby grounds in the world, so we are aware of the challenge in front of us and excited at what lies ahead.” He added: “This is also our final hit out before the first Test match against the Springboks, so it is an important game for us. There is healthy competition for Test spots so this is another opportunity for players to put their hands up for selection.”

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Bulls Name Their Warriors: Experience Meets Hunger

While the All Blacks have named a strong side, the Bulls have responded with a team that screams intent. Captain Marcell Coetzee leads from the front at flank, and he is surrounded by serious quality. Four capped Springboks have been selected: Coetzee, scrumhalf Embrose Papier, flyhalf Curwin Bosch, and fullback Willie le Roux. Bosch makes his return to South African rugby after two years in France, and the former Sharks playmaker will be tasked with marshalling the backline alongside Papier. The Bulls also welcome back loose forward Hanro Liebenberg, who has returned to South Africa after a successful stint with the Leicester Tigers in the English Premiership. He forms a formidable loose trio with Coetzee and Jeandré Rudolph, one of the Bulls’ standout performers in last season’s URC. Former Sharks and Munster wing Thaakir Abrahams provides another attacking option, while Currie Cup standout Hakeem Kunene is named among the replacements. This is a side with genuine Test-match experience and a point to prove. Coetzee, who has played against the All Blacks four times before, is relishing the opportunity. “I’ve been very privileged to have played them four times. Last one in 2014, it was a phenomenal All Blacks team. To get the opportunity to play them again after all these years, that’s awesome,” he said. He spoke of the buzz in the squad. “You can just see the buzz in the youngsters’ faces with the game coming up this weekend. The reality is everybody’s not going to get that opportunity, maybe at international level, but this is a great opportunity for the guys to really exert themselves and measure themselves where they want to go in the future.”

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Ackermann’s Promise: “We’re Going to Give It a Bash”

Johan Ackermann is a man who wears his heart on his sleeve. The Bulls coach has made it crystal clear that his side has no intention of rolling over at Loftus on Saturday night. “We’re competitive and we’re going to give them a run for their money, hopefully. That’s the aim,” Ackermann said. “We don’t want to make it easy. Even though they’re probably, from a rugby point of view, more battle-hardened, we’re going to give it a bash. We still believe that if we do things well, we can upset them and push them all the way.” That fighting spirit is exactly what former Springbok coach Nick Mallett expects to see. Speaking on the Talking Boks podcast, Mallett highlighted the blend of experience and youthful enthusiasm in the Bulls squad. “I think a lot of it is having five or six guys over 30, if you can – guys who can guide your team and hold them together when things get a bit panicked,” Mallett said. “But also you must have the enthusiasm of youth, and I think the Bulls have got that.” Mallett believes the Bulls will draw on the emotion of the occasion. “The Bulls got to the final of the URC and they’ve got strength in depth. And they will also play for their coach. They will play for their supporters,” he said. “They’ve got that sort of Stormers-like, ‘We don’t want to let our public down.’ I get that feeling when I see the Bulls play, that they respect Johan Ackermann. They don’t want to let him down. They don’t want to let the supporters down either.” Mallett pointed to the Stormers’ performance in Cape Town as the blueprint. The Stormers put the All Blacks under sustained pressure for most of the match before fading in the final 10 minutes. Coetzee echoed that sentiment, highlighting the South African DNA. “The Stormers really took it to them. Defensive wise, set-piece wise, the aerial game, making the breakdowns a mess, that’s the South African DNA,” Coetzee said.

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A Rivalry Written in History: 50 Years On

Saturday’s match carries extra historical weight. This will be only the fifth meeting between the Bulls and New Zealand, with the All Blacks having won three of the previous four encounters. The Bulls’ only victory came in 1976, when Northern Transvaal beat the All Blacks 29-27. Saturday’s match falls almost exactly 50 years after that famous result. The ghosts of Loftus past will be watching. The All Blacks arrive in Pretoria having beaten a competitive Stormers side 38-21 in Cape Town before thrashing a severely weakened Sharks team 54-0 in Durban. They are unbeaten on tour and looking to maintain that momentum before the Springboks Tests at Ellis Park next Saturday. But the Bulls are in pre-season, and while they may lack the match sharpness of the tourists, they have the hunger, the experience, and the home crowd behind them. The 50,000-capacity Loftus Versfeld is expected to be a cauldron of noise. Ticket prices have been a talking point throughout the tour. The Stormers match attracted 47,130 fans to the 55,000-capacity Cape Town Stadium, with ticket prices blamed for the match not selling out. Tuesday night’s Sharks clash drew just 14,759 to the 46,000-capacity Kings Park, although the cold, wet weather was also a factor. For the Bulls clash, tickets remain available across several price categories. The cheapest seats are priced at R250 and are situated in the upper-level corners of the stadium, with limited availability remaining. There are R350 tickets available in the upper stands, including sections closer to the halfway line. Fans wanting to sit on the lower level will have to pay more. Tickets starting at R650 are available around the tryline, while R850 will get fans closer to the 22m and halfway lines. Premium seats around the halfway line on the lower level are priced from R1,350.

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The Stage Is Set: Loftus Awaits

This is what South African rugby is all about. A packed Loftus Versfeld on a Saturday night, the All Blacks in town, and a Bulls side desperate to prove themselves against the best in the world. The All Blacks have named a strong side, with Taylor leading from the front. The Bulls have responded with a team full of capped Boks and hungry youngsters. Ackermann has promised a fight. Mallett expects emotion and passion. Coetzee wants to measure himself against the best. The stage is set. The history is written. The only question left is who will write the next chapter. For the Bulls, this is a chance to etch their names into folklore, 50 years after Northern Transvaal’s famous victory. For the All Blacks, it is a final tune-up before the ultimate test against the Springboks at Ellis Park. One thing is certain: Loftus Versfeld will be rocking. The boerewors will be sizzling. The vuvuzelas will be blowing. And for 80 minutes, Pretoria will hold its breath. This is the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry, and it is coming to the Highveld.

Tags: All Blacks, Vodacom Bulls, Codie Taylor, Loftus Versfeld, Johan Ackermann, Marcell Coetzee, Willie le Roux, Curwin Bosch, Dave Rennie, Nick Mallett, Rugby's Greatest Rivalry, Springboks, Pretoria, URC

By Dante Williams, Staff Writer

This article was produced with AI-assisted research and editorial support. Reporting is based on sources cited in the article.