Springboks and Vodacom Bulls prop forward Lizo Gqoboka says he can’t contain his excitement ahead of their opening Vodacom Super Rugby clash against the Cell C Sharks at the Johnson Kings Park in Durban on Friday night.
The Bulls on Wednesday named a strong Match Day 23 with former Boks pivot Morne Steyn set to run out at flyhalf on his return after a seven-year absence playing abroad.
Gqoboka says he expects the clash to be almost at Test match rugby level with the humid conditions and the Springboks on either side.
Bulls’ 24-year-old lock-cum-flanker and new sensation Abongile Nonkontwana has hinted that Friday night’s game will be nothing short of a kicking and counter-attacking game.
The Port Elizabeth-born Nonkontwana, who spent a couple of years with the Bulls straight out of the SA U20, says he is pleased to be back with the Bulls and playing Super Rugby again.
The former Selborne and St Alban’s College Boy, Nonkontwana, says at the moment he is solely focused on helping the team over the line against at the Shark Tank and cement his place in the team for the season.
The nearly two-metre tall physical giant says he is also looking forward to helping his tea challenge for the Super Rugby title this season.
With the likes of Boks prop Thomas du Toit and former SA U20 and Cheetahs star Oxe Nche set to start for the Sharks, the 29-year-old Ntabankulu-born Gqoboka emphases that they are expecting a very physical front row battle at scrum-time. – Report by Thando Gqamane
