Following a 42-33 victory for the Bulls over Edinburgh, here are our five takeaways from the United Rugby Championship quarter-final at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.
The top line
Jake White’s Bulls are guaranteed a home game in the semi-finals of the United Rugby Championship after they produced a stunning comeback to shock Edinburgh in Pretoria.
For last year’s beaten finalists, who defeated Leinster in the last-four before succumbing to Glasgow Warriors in the showpiece event, they are desperate to make up for that disappointment. However, at one stage, it looked like they may come unstuck by another Scottish side.
Edinburgh were magnificent for 30 minutes, putting themselves in a strong position through Wes Goosen’s try and Ross Thompson’s brace, with the Bulls’ only response coming through Cameron Hanekom’s effort and Keagan Johannes’ penalty.
White’s men were certainly shaken by their opponents’ fast start but, after they upped the intensity and took control in the set-piece, the hosts had too much firepower for the Scots and won the game thanks to five quick-fire tries through David Kriel, Harold Vorster, Canan Moodie, Johannes and Ruan Nortje.
Edinburgh did respond via Goosen and Ewan Ashman, but by that point, their hopes of reaching the URC last-four had already been dashed.
Reckless Sebastian de Klerk
The wing has been in fine form recently, but he has also felt the wrath of White. De Klerk was described as being “stupid” by the head coach when he was sent off for recklessly taking out Leinster’s Jamie Osborne in the air in March.
Lessons probably should have been learned, but De Klerk once again found himself in hot water after he connected with the head of Darcy Graham on Saturday. The Scotland star kicked ahead and the Bulls speedster was deemed to have illegally moved into his path and taken him out, resulting in a yellow card.
Some will feel that it is harsh, given the close proximity De Klerk was to Graham when the Edinburgh man kicked the ball, but he did seem to move his position – whether intentionally or not – to block his fellow wing.
It was to prove costly as the visitors touched down twice while he was off the field, with Goosen going over and Thompson crossing the whitewash for the first of his two tries. White will demand that they clean up their discipline in the next round.
The response
The Bulls endured a dreadful opening 15 minutes, going 14-3 behind, but they can always rely on Cameron Hanekom and their trusty scrum to give them hope. The number eight had already produced a barnstorming surge from his own 22 to get his side on the front foot before Hanekom touched down at the end of the first quarter for the Bulls’ first try of the match.
It epitomised his display as the Springbok was once again the Pretoria outfit’s talisman at the base of the scrum, putting a shift on both sides of the ball by being their best carrier and defender. There is no doubt that after another fine season, he will be getting more international action.
The same could be said for Wilco Louw and potentially Jan-Hendrik Wessels, who led the charge in the set-piece. It took a bit of time for the front-row to assert their dominance, but eventually the pressure exerted by Louw and Wessels proved too much for the visitors. Their efforts were absolutely vital and their five-try blitz either side of the break won them the game.
Edinburgh’s capitulation
At 21-8 in front after 30 minutes, the Scottish outfit were in a fine position. It was a thoroughly deserved lead, too, with Sean Everitt’s men playing some outstanding rugby and the back-row of Jamie Ritchie, Hamish Watson and Magnus Bradbury putting in a tremendous shift.
However, they will rue a crazy 20 minutes which saw them go from 13 points clear to 39-21 behind as the Bulls scythed through the Edinburgh defence at will. The aforementioned scrum set the platform for the hosts, but Embrose Papier and Johannes finally found a rhythm at half-back, while Willie le Roux also finally came to the party.
Two unconverted tries from Kriel and Vorster in the final eight minutes of the first half got them back into the game before Edinburgh saw their chances fade at the start of the second period. To the visitors’ credit, they came back into the contest in the final quarter, but it was not enough as that period either side of the interval proved devastating. It was a gallant effort, but on reflection, that will hurt them badly.
The bad and good of Willie le Roux
No one summed up this game more than the Springboks great. In the first 20 minutes, Le Roux was utterly terrible. Whether it was kicks going into touch, making forward passes or simply making the wrong decision, it seemed like the playmaker could not do anything right.
But that all changed as the Bulls’ attacking linchpin managed to turn it around and become the team’s key creative outlet once again. In those aforementioned 20 minutes, the 35-year-old dissected Edinburgh’s defence with regularity, sparking a number of opportunities and ending the match with two try assists.
Le Roux has had some unfair criticism over the years but there is no doubt that he is the player that makes the Bulls tick with ball in hand and, when he plays well, so do his team. With the Pretoria-based outfit struggling at fly-half this season, there is no doubt that he is the key man in their backline.
Src: Planetrugby.com - https://www.planetrugby.com/news/bulls-v-edinburgh-five-takeaways-as-springboks-powerhouses-inspire-stunning-comeback-while-scots-rue-crazy-20-minutes
