The Cheetahs head to the capital with the semi-finals in the back of their minds, while also looking to bounce back to winning ways. The Free Staters need a victory over the Bulls to keep their hopes alive, while the Pretoria side are already out of the running.

The Sharks, however, could do the Cheetahs a big favour as early as Friday evening when they host the Pumas in Durban.

Cheetahs versus Bulls during the 2023 Currie Cup semi-final in Bloemfontein. Photo: Morgan Piek

While the Bulls do have several URC players available, stars like Canan Moodie and Ruan Nortjé are currently in New Zealand with the Springboks. Others, such as Akker van der Merwe and Cameron Hanekom, are sidelined with long-term injuries.

The Bulls are facing something of an injury crisis, which has complicated matters in both the Currie Cup and the upcoming URC campaign. In addition, many of the URC players who are fit and available are lacking game time, which is why they will be fielded this weekend to get much-needed minutes in their legs ahead of the new season.

It is, however, uncertain which of these players will enjoy a run on the weekend.

Ackermann told OFM Sport that while the situation is far from ideal, it’s important to get players ready with the bigger picture in mind.

“We’re going to start introducing some players who haven’t had much game time over the last few weeks but have been working hard on the side,” said the former Springbok lock.

“Ideally, I would’ve loved to play a proper warm-up match, almost like with chukkas, where you can rotate players and manage minutes, but unfortunately, we couldn’t get that arranged. Now the Cheetahs game is our only real opportunity.

“For me, it’s about seeing where we are from a conditioning point of view. In a warm-up game, you can limit guys to 50 or 60 minutes, but now we’ll have to push seven players through a full 80 minutes. That will give us a clear indication of where we stand.

“We also still have a number of injuries, so a few younger players will get their chance in the Currie Cup. It’s important to see how they handle the step up, even though they’ve been training with the senior group.

Johan Grobbelaar in the 2023 Currie Cup semi-final against the Cheetahs. Photo: Morgan Piek

“Then, from my side, it’s the first time I’ll be able to see the things we’ve been implementing in a real match situation. It’s also about getting a sense of the players’ character, how we react to different scenarios, and how the coaching and support staff work together on game day. In that sense, it’s a valuable rehearsal for what lies ahead in the future.”

Saturday’s match between the Bulls and the Cheetahs at Loftus Versfeld kicks off at 19:05.

OFM Sport/Morgan Piek mvh