Speaking after a dramatic 2024 Currie Cup exit, Phiwe Nomlomo reflected on the highs and lows of his first season as head coach of the Vodacom Bulls.
The Bulls on Saturday missed out on a spot in next week’s final of rugby’s oldest competition after the Sharks fought back from being three players down to seal an extra-time draw in Pretoria.
Trevor Nyakanye scored the decisive try in the 98th minute of play at Loftus Versfeld, and the Durbanites progressed to the showpiece on the tries scored rule, having dotted down six times to the Bulls’ five.
The Sharks were reduced to 12 men in the closing stages of regular time. However, the Bulls spurned several opportunities to win the match, and Johan Goosen missed a 50-metre penalty in the final play of the 80, as did Boeta Chamberlain in the 100th minute of the playoff.
“There was a plan, we just didn’t execute,” Nomlomo told reporters post-match at Loftus. “We slipped a few tackles in the first half but that was just one-on-one stuff and we’ll have a look at it… it was disappointing.
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“But the guys were valiant out there, they really tried hard. Goosen broke his nose early and he stayed out there for the whole game. And Cobus [Wiese] played 100 minutes as a forward. That’s massive for us, so there’s a lot to take out of this.
“Of course we could’ve been better. We broke the line a couple of times in that first half, and we possibly could’ve put the game to bed with a bit more accuracy and patience.”
The Herd were unbeaten and topped the standings after the first eight rounds of the regular season, but lost both their remaining clashes and were overtaken by the Lions, who will host the final at Ellis Park next Saturday.
“Did we do well at times this season? Yes, incredibly, and we grew a couple of guys who were younger – we saw Katlego Letebele come in [as a late replacement on Saturday] and he looked like a world-beater,” Nomlomo said.
“Just even Boeta, the confidence at the back-end just to say, ‘give it to me’. That for me is important. He’s going to grow and get better in how he influences the game.
“This game was weird, because we had it in our hands and then let go, and that’s the part for me that’s disappointing.”
With one eye on the Currie Cup playoffs while prepping for the Vodacom URC, the Bulls fielded much-changed lineups bolstered by experienced but undercooked players the last two weeks while negotiating a growing injury list.
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On whether the Bulls took the right approach for the Currie Cup as he cut his teeth in the hot seat, Nomlomo adds, “It’s a difficult question to ask now, to ponder on what the season was like … I thank the staff, the coaches, the director with the CEO and the board, because everyone was behind me.
“Again, a loss comes down to one person, the head coach, that’s a tough part. There’ll probably be sleepless nights for a while but we’ll get over it.
“I try not to work too much on wrong or right, we want to improve every single game because you can always find something. That continuous growth was important.
“We wanted to blend the squad as much as possible, and haven’t been able to field the same 23 back-to-back all season, and it’s not just because of rotation but because of how hard we were hammered with injuries.
“The growth would’ve been trying to get an identity earlier with the squad so that we knew what we’re about, because we came together massively well. And we didn’t always show bravery, and that was another thing today.
“When they had 12 guys on the park and we had 15, I just wish we had been more brave to then play.”
Photo: Lee Warren/Gallo Images
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Src: sarugbymag.co.za
