The Bulls will want to dictate the tempo and intensity when they face Leinster in Pretoria on Saturday in the semi-finals of the United Rugby Championship.

Irish teams have the knack of slowing down games in South Africa, especially on the Highveld where the altitude is a major factor.

For the Bulls to make use of the altitude they will have to start fast and control the pace of the game.

The Bulls prop, Wilco Louw, told OFM Sport that whatever the Irish giants try, the altitude will catch up, but it is also something that will go both ways.

“To get altitude to work at its best is to play a high-tempo game and get them to run a lot,” Louw said.

“Teams like Munster have come and brought the tempo down quite a bit, but it doesn’t matter how slow you make it, the effects of altitude will get you anyway. Rugby is played over 80-minutes and even longer sometimes.

“That said, the teams are getting smarter, and someone during a break is sitting down getting medical attention. Sometimes there is something wrong that needs attention.

“It does go both ways, when they rest, we rest as well.

“Hopefully we can get a nice tempo and play a good brand of entertaining rugby where the ball needs to be in play.

“If you make it slow, you still need to run and you still have to scrum, so regardless of what you do, the impact of altitude will still be there.

“They are a well-coached team and they are also very fit. They won’t go away and it will be an interesting test for all of us. It will be a tough game.”

Saturday’s semi-final at Loftus Versfeld kicks off at 16:00. At 19:00, the defending champions, Munster, will be in action against Franco Smith’s Glasgow Warriors in Limerick.

Morgan Piek OFM Sport