Rugby: Eight changes to break Chiefs' 'malaise'

Coach Dave Rennie. Photo / APN

The Chiefs pride themselves on their depth and that will be tested after making eight changes to the side to face the Bulls tomorrow morning in Pretoria.

Having turned in perhaps their worst performance in three seasons against the Force last weekend, coach Dave Rennie showed his disappointment with wholesale changes to his run-on XV.

Only one of those adjustments was due to injury, with Tim Nanai-Williams moving to the bench after tweaking a hamstring in Perth. His absence hands Andrew Horrell his season's first start at centre, where he will link with Tasman's Tom Marshall.

The other change in the backline leaves 18-year-old Anton Lienert Brown set to make his debut on the wing, with Mils Muliaina moving to fullback in place of Gareth Anscombe.

Versatility is among the Chiefs' strong suits — Aaron Cruden is the only back to start all four matches — and assistant coach Wayne Smith is confident another new centre combination will cope well at Loftus Versfeld.

"We've got huge versatility," he said. "I think we've proven over the last few years that we can cope with injuries.

"We weren't happy with the way things went [against the Force] but we were happy with the combination we put out. I wouldn't read too much into the combination — what happened was more a general malaise within the squad and it's hard to pick out any one factor."

The Chiefs will be hoping that malaise clears against the sixth-placed Bulls, considering the champs are without a win in Pretoria since 2001. To break that streak the Chiefs will have to overcome their difficulties in the lineout, where they will be seriously tested against one of the best sides in the competition at that particular facet.

Handed the monumental task of dealing with Victor Matfield and Co will be Brodie Retallick and the England-born Matt Symons, who replaces Michael Fitzgerald in the starting line-up.

Another man with a testing time ahead is Rhys Marshall. A replacement for Mahonri Schwalger, Marshall has the lowest throw success rates in the competition (63 per cent), compared to Bulls hooker Callie Visagie's second-ranked 92 per cent.

Smith expected the South African side to drive from the set piece at every opportunity with the aim of accruing penalties, but he warned that was far from the only danger they would present.

"You can't assume that's all the Bulls are going to do — they've actually moved the ball quite a bit and they've got quite a potent backline. So you've got to be able to switch from both assets of play - cover the driving forwards then be able to also cover the wide attack."

Adding to the difficulty is Loftus Versfeld, among the most daunting venues in Super Rugby.

"It's never easy of Loftus Versfeld. The Bulls have a bit of a fortress and any time you win there it's a special occasion."