Melbourne Rebels confident of elusive win in South Africa
By James Wong
The Melbourne Rebels welcome back star flyhalf Jack Debreczeni and lock Steve Cummins for their round two clash against the Bulls in Pretoria, as the franchise searches for its first ever win in South Africa.
Debreczeni has recovered from an illness that kept him out of last week’s game against the Force, while Cummins makes his first appearance of 2016.
Lopeti Timani moves to No.8 and Adam Thomson to blindside flanker to make way for Cummins, while Jordy Reid moves to the bench. Two try hero Reece Hodge will start at fullback in place of Mike Harris who will miss 10-12 weeks with a quad injury.
The Rebels have been hit early by injuries to key players this season. In addition to Harris, Colby Fainga’a is set to miss up to six weeks with a strained elbow and Nic Strizaker is still recovering from shoulder surgery.
Despite that, Rebels coach Tony McGahan remained positive about the team’s ability to handle the injuries.
"We were floored by both injuries to be ho