KEY POINTS:
Highlanders rugby coach Glenn Moore is bracing his team for a particularly hostile reception in Pretoria as they strive to improve their Super 14 standing against the bruised Bulls.
Moore is mindful that the Bulls will be hurting deeply after suffering a 22-50 thumping by the Hurricanes at their beloved Loftus Versfeld last weekend.
The 2007 champions have under-performed on a large scale this season, the heavy loss to the Hurricanes leaving them in 13th place on 10 points after nine rounds.
The Highlanders are just one point and two places above them, meaning both sides are scrambling for respectability in the second half of the competition.
Moore knows his team have been done no favours by the Hurricanes, predicting the Bulls will revert to type and present the Highlanders with a particularly tough physical and mental challenge on Sunday morning (NZT).
"I've told the guys already that they will be going into a very hostile environment against the Bulls," Moore said from Durban.
"They might like you afterwards but they certainly don't beforehand.
"The Bulls themselves will be very desperate and we will be up against a team who will be very fired up.
"They are struggling at the moment and coming off the back of quite a thumping against the Hurricanes."
Moore said the Highlanders had to stay tight as a group and stay composed.
"There's only one way to shut them (crowd) up and that's to play well and try and get on top of them."
Moore said he and the coaching staff had slightly tweaked the team's gameplan this week to make allowance for the physical confrontation they were expecting.
"We've made some subtle changes to how we may do things.
"It's important for us that we don't try and get into a crash bang fest with them. Our focus will be on having ball in hand and attacking.
"We know they've generally got a formidable forward pack and that they like to get involved in the physical encounter of the game.
"We also know if you can dominate and start penetrating that they can to get a bit frustrated as well."
The Bulls will be without regular captain, Fourie du Preez, because of a hand injury, with Wikus van Heerden expected to inherit the leadership duties.
The Bulls have leaked the most tries (36) and scored the least (16) in the competition while their ill discipline has cost them also, with nine of their players having spent time in the sinbin.
But those statistics are irrelevant to Moore, who had mixed news on the injury front.
One of his loose forwards, Adam Thomson, is a doubtful starter after straining a calf muscle in the 17-19 loss to the Sharks in Dunedin last Friday.
Thomson's fitness will be assessed later in the week, and in the meantime Moore is pleased to have another two of his loosies, Stephen Setephano and Alando Soakai, both back on deck.
Those two had missed the team's previous two outings due to injury.
As well, midfield back Johnny Leota is over a virus which ruled him out against the Sharks.
- NZPA
