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'I spoke to him': The Bok that steered Juarno 'Trokkie' Augustus to Ulster
By Simon Thomas
Juarno Augustus is following in the footsteps of a couple of South African greats by plying his trade in the Ulster Rugby back row, but he is rising to the challenge.
Springboks Duane Vermeulen and Marcell Coetzee both performed with distinction for the Irish province and now it’s Augustus’ turn to show his qualities having made the move from Northampton last summer.
The uncapped 28-year-old has had his bide his time, with an ankle injury keeping him out for some three months, but he returned in style against Edinburgh Rugby on the weekend.
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Packing down at No.8, he produced a try-scoring Player of the Match display as Ulster triumphed 40-19 at the Hive Stadium to move up to second in the BKT URC table.
Now the ex-Stormers forward – nicknamed ‘Trokkie’ (small truck) for his hard running – will turn his attention to Friday night’s big Belfast derby clash with in-form Connacht Rugby at the Affidea Stadium.
“I am happy to be back. It means a lot,” he said.
“It’s been a while. I’ve worked a bit on my fitness.
“I base my game on physicality and carrying and tackling, so that’s what I want to try and bring to the team.
“I am just happy that I can give my best and try and help the team.”
Augustus has previously revealed how a conversation with countryman Coetzee helped him decide that joining Ulster would be a good move.
“I spoke to him last year before I came over and he couldn’t stop talking about the good things the club has done and what it can achieve in the next couple of years,” he said.
“I just want to get the best out of myself for the three years I will be here. I will do whatever I can to try to help the team get some silverware. I have a feeling it is not that far away. The potential in this team is unreal.”
Ulster trailed 19-14 at half-time against Edinburgh, but ran away with the game after the break, scoring six tries in all, three of them while down to 14 men.
“We needed the win. We haven’t won away from home in quite a bit, so we had to set things right,” said Augustus.
“We played against the wind in the first half and struggled a bit. We made some errors and kept them in the game.
“The message at half time was just to stay consistent and do everything with intent – tackle with intent, run with intent – and then just get the ball to our backs because they are incredible.
“We knew if we just stuck to our roles and did what we do best, we could win the game and we did that. The second half was good.
“It’s a good win for us, so hopefully we can keep building on that and take it forward.”
Ulster coach Richie Murphy was full of praise for the shift Augustus put in on his return to the team.
“With Juarno coming back, we had no intention of playing him for 80, but that’s what happens sometimes and he rolled his sleeves up,” he said.
“He’s a really good ball carrier.”
Reflecting on the bonus point win in Edinburgh, Murphy said: “We weren’t perfect, but I thought we showed great character and some of the tries we scored in the second half were excellent. The lads came out and delivered.
“It’s a really tough place to go, so we were delighted to come away with five points. We are up to second in the league as well, so it’s brilliant.”
Skipper Rob Herring added: “I was very proud of the whole squad. We started pretty slow, but we brought it back together, particularly in the second half when I thought we were brilliant. So I’m incredibly happy.
“Getting the away win was a massive target for us. We are second in the table now with a big block of rugby coming up and we’ll go into it with a bit of confidence.”
With six league matches still to play, Ulster have already surpassed their tally of points from last season, when they finished 14th in the table.
Giving his thoughts on the turnaround, head coach Murphy said: “We have got a little bit more clarity and belief in what we are doing and it shows on the pitch.”
