URC returns with high-stakes Jukskei Derby, SA showdowns

AS THE United Rugby Championship (URC) resumes this weekend, South African fans are gearing up for a series of high-stakes clashes, with the Jukskei Derby at Loftus standing out as the headline fixture.

- ROWAN CALLAGHAN

The Bulls are hoping to bounce back from their away defeat against the Glasgow Warriors before the international break, while neighbours the Lions will be buoyed after two successive wins erased memories of a nightmare European tour.

The Bulls, last year's beaten finalists, started the season brightly with two home wins, but endured a mixed tour, with a narrow win against Connacht sandwiched between losses to Ulster and the Warriors.

They have often struggled to balance new coach Johan Ackerman's expansive approach with the physical dominance and forward power game that served them so well in the past, but will hope that a return to their Loftus fortress this weekend will help reassert their dominance and restore confidence. They are currently sixth in the table, two places above their neighbours.