Bulls hold few fears for prop

Neemia Tialata hopes to bury a few ghosts tonight.

The Hurricanes tighthead prop had "a shocker" against the Bulls in Pretoria last year when in only his second rugby game in the Super 12. He was overawed by the occasion and intimidated by the massive Afrikaans pack and hostile crowd at Loftus Versfeld.

A year on, Tialata, 22, is keen to show he is a different player.

"I have to prove myself. Last year I had a shocker playing against them. It was my first year in the Super 12. They were huge and I just lost my focus.

"This year I've got heaps of confidence and playing them at home will be awesome. I know I owe them one."

How well Tialata can deliver on that promise will be crucial to the Hurricanes' hopes of backing up their successes on the road with a home win.

The Bulls' game plan is joined at the hip with their set-piece prowess. When they dominate up front, they are hard to beat, as the Hurricanes learned in Pretoria last year and Napier the year before.

But, as the Highlanders showed in Dunedin last week, if you upset the Bulls' scrum, the confidence in the rest of their game disintegrates.

That is the key for the Hurricanes - especially if the murky weather remains around the Wellington hills.

This match is an acid test for the Hurricanes, who have plenty of excuses for not playing well.

They have had to cope with the travel home from South Africa last weekend and deal with the disruptions of injuries to Brent Ward and Conrad Smith, the controversy over Ma'a Nonu's "suspension" and the absence of Lome Fa'atau who is at the Sevens World Cup.

Three wins in as many weeks is a superb way to kick off the season, but the reality for the Hurricanes is that none of the teams they have played are title threats. That doesn't change tonight but champion teams don't slip against the bottom teams.

Tialata is confident the Hurricanes pack is ready for the Bulls, who put down 200 scrums at training on Tuesday.

"They're big and strong but we can match up to them."

- NZPA