Eighthman Cameron Hanekom believes the Bulls have acquitted themselves well in the absence of three Springboks and another key player who left last season.

Meanwhile, news also emerged on Tuesday that Springbok loose forward Kwagga Smith could be on his way to the Bulls after he and Japanese club Shizuoka Blue Rev ended his contract by mutual consent.

A Bulls media liaison would not let questions veer towards this topic on Tuesday, after there was speculation he would join the Pretoria union.

If he does, Smith could bolster the Bulls’ leadership group further.

Bulls felt their loss

Hanekom was speaking Tuesday after the Pretoria side recorded a huge 56-20 win over Stade Français in their first Champions Cup pool match on the weekend.

This followed two bonus-point wins and a narrow defeat in the United Rugby Championship, where the Bulls sit third on the table ahead of their home match against a beleaguered Ulster side on Saturday afternoon.

Though the Bulls have benefitted from new signings such as Hanro Liebenberg, Curwin Bosch and Luan Giliomee, among others, Hanekom admitted the loss of star Boks Ruan Nortjé (the 10th-most capped Bulls captain), Wilco Louw and Kurt-Lee Arendse, and utility back David Kriel, was a “big change”.

“They all played a massive role in the Bulls’ identity and who we are,” Hanekom said.

“You have to give them their flowers. They gave it their all for the Bulls, and it is never lekker to have one of your good mates go away, and knowing that you’re coming to the Loftus in the mornings, and you’re not going to see Wilco or Ruan and them. But it’s part of life, and we all respect the choices that they made.

“What we can do from our side is just step up a level. I mean, we’ve got a lot of senior players that plays big roles. We’ve got enough people in place to at least make that step up and make sure that the system is still functioning as it should.”

Players step up

JF van Heerden and Reinhardt Ludwig, 22 and 24, respectively, have had to step up at No 5, while Francois Klopper has shouldered most of the responsibility at tighthead lock, with Khutha Mchunu increasingly featuring.

Marcell Coetzee took on the captaincy role until his injury. Then Hanro Liebenberg and most recently, Elrigh Louw, were given opportunities.

The wing and fullback positions are well covered with new signings Thaakir Abrahms, Hakeem Kunene and Giliomee, while Sebastian de Klerk has returned from a long injury lay-off.