Bulls’ 103kg-wing Stravino Jacobs can make an impact at centre, says coach Johan Ackermann

Johan Ackermann, the Bulls coach, is confident that stocky Stravino Jacobs can make an impact at inside centre against Munster, despite the team's loss of Harold Vorster due to illness. Jacobs, a 26-year-old weighing 103kg, usually plays on the left wing but has shown his power running last week against Zebre, a quality Ackermann believes will be valuable when given more ball in hand.

The coach compared Jacobs' physicality to that of former Lions star Ruan Combrinck and All Black Caleb Clarke. With Jacobs' arrival, former Munster winger Thaakir Abrahams is expected to return to the Bulls' left wing. Munster, on the other hand, will be looking to avenge their 26-20 loss to Glasgow Warriors and will be motivated after losing their first game of the season.

Ackermann expects the Irish province to be a challenging opponent, and he provided an update on several injured players who remain in South Africa, including Akker van der Merwe, who has not played since January due to a neck injury but is showing good progress. The Bulls will receive a significant boost with the return of Springboks Marco van Staden, Johan Grobbelaar, and Jan-Hendrik Wessels next week, all capable of playing at hooker. The team will host the Lions at Loftus Versfeld on October 10.