Following the Stormers’ 19-16 victory over the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld, here are our five takeaways from the United Rugby Championship (URC) derby.
The top line
Pretoria’s rugby cathedral was turned into something that more closely resembled a swimming pool on Saturday as the heavens opened, delaying kick-off by over an hour, with fans helping the ground staff sweep the water off the soaked turf.
But the officials, players and fans persevered in an attempt to get arguably South Africa’s fiercest local derby, the North v South, underway on Saturday with a healthy crowd weathering the storm and those who did were duly rewarded.
As with most derbies, particularly between these two proud unions, it was a feisty and closely fought start as the Stormers, like the weather, flooded the Bulls with pressure early on and were rewarded in the opening seconds with a penalty that Jurie Matthee converted. The Bulls were quick to respond through a David Kriel penalty soon after as the two sides looked to climatise after a prolonged stint twiddling their thumbs in the dressing rooms.
The two kickers continued to trade blows in the first half with Matthee landing one more than his counterpart to give the Stormers a 12-9 advantage at the break.
Paired with the hour delay, the fans that endured the condition had to wait a total of two hours for the first try of the match as Ruan Vermaak powered over from close range after a neat set move from a tap play in the 60th minute.
The Stormers played the conditions well for large chunks of the match and were rewarded for doing so when one of Matthee’s kicks found the soaked grass and Paul de Wet managed to get a boot on it and Wandisle Simelane won the foot race to score against his former employers to put his side ahead in the final 15 minutes.
That gave his side a three-point buffer, which was just enough to seal a victory in a soaking night in Pretoria.
Test match in the URC
Today’s match might not have got the glitz and glam of a Springboks Test match but for those aspiring to pull on a Green and Gold jumper this year, Rassie Erasmus would have got a good idea of their credentials.
There were clear requirements for players akin to that of an international fixture: the set-pieces needed to be on point as did discipline, core skills and execution with kicking in open play and off the tee also being crucial.
It was the kind of match that was decided on the small margins, execution of the basics, performing under pressure and making the most of the opportunities.
There was a ton of ‘hit and hope’ with a lot of the kicking and game management in the torrid conditions but the old adage of a kick is only as good as its chase was never as true as it was today.
The small margins ultimately decided the match with the Bulls failing to deal with a high bomb, de Wet got his toe to it, Simelane was just on side and Evan Roos timed his pilfer perfectly to clinch the win.
Daan Human delight
While so many fans ruined the weather in Pretoria, one man would have had the popcorn ready as he got comfortable for a scrum feast that was promised. Springboks scrum coach Daan Human would have revelled in the scenes in Pretoria as he got treated to many set-pieces over the 80 minutes.
His evening would have been made even more enjoyable with the front-row talent on display with Wilco Louw and Gerhard Steenekamp doing a job on the Stormers’ starting front rowers – who fought back valiantly at times – a combination that could do damage in the Green and Gold jumper in the coming months.
While Neethling Fouche held on as much as he could muster, the Bulls’ power was just overwhelming and the Stormers leaked penalties on both sides of the set-piece because of the pressure. Even with the introduction of veteran Springbok Frans Malherbe, the tide could not be turned.
Following the retirement of Steven Kitshoff earlier this week, director of rugby John Dobson emphasised the Stormers need to recruit a new loosehead prop and on today’s evidence, that signing can’t come soon enough, particularly with Brok Harris’ impending retirement. Scrummaging is an eight-man effort and the Bulls were better in that regard but it’s clear the Stormers need to improve their stocks.
As for the Bulls, their scrum is very much the cornerstone of their game with Steenekamp and Louw leading the charge and the duo are no slouches around the park. When they aren’t on the park, they have the athletic freak Jan-Hendrik Wessels who continually improves along with the solid Francois Klopper.
Stormers keep their play-off hopes alive
After the Sharks’ loss to the Lions, the Bulls had the opportunity to wrap up the SA Shield but fell agonisingly short as the Stormers clinched a shock victory.
Dobson spoke before kick-off stating that his side had the opportunity to claim a special victory with very few pundits giving the visitors much hope.
However, his team rose to the occasion and overcame the adversity in fantastic fashion. While Roos was named man of the match, much of the credit for the victory must go to the Stormers’ half-backs that dealt with the conditions better than their counterparts.
Matthee was particularly excellent in what felt like his finest shift yet in the Stormers jersey and highlighted the need for an out-and-out number ten in conditions such like this. Willie le Roux did not have a poor outing but one cannot help but think that the Bulls would have come out on top if their new signing Handre Pollard had arrived today and not ahead of next season.
Still, despite so much going against the Stormers like the scrum, they stuck in the fight and claimed a real character win. The Capetonians won the first URC campaign when few gave them hope of doing so and with an outside chance of still making the play-offs, who knows 2024/25 could be another shock.
Springboks watch
It’s was a real shame to see Cobus Wiese hobble off the pitch with a nasty-looking hamstring injury after an overextension at the breakdown. The lock-blindside hybrid forward was enjoying a fine outing having highlighted his desire to increase his workload to mirror Pieter-Steph du Toit more earlier in the week. During his stint, he was certainly making his presence felt at the breakdown and the close quarters which would have caught the Bok coaching staff’s eye.
The same can be said of Marco van Staden who got stuck into the breakdowns and while he did concede a soft penalty, he was largely effective in spoiling the Stormers’ ball before he too was forced off injured. Canan Moodie’s early exit sorely impacted the Bulls’ kick-chase efforts today with the lengthy outside back lasting just 26 minutes.
Still, there were several Bulls’ forwards that stuck their hands up, Johan Grobbelaar was outstanding in open play but had a few wobbles at the lineout while being part of a dominant Bulls front-row. As mentioned above the starting Bulls’ props were sensational and showed that the future of the Bok front row is in rude health.
Reinhardt Ludwig had another livewire performance and smartly adjusted his lineout calls after the half-time break in a performance that showed exactly why the Bok coaching team are keen to have a closer look at him.
Over to the Stormers pack and Roos led the charge with the ball in hand as he muscled his way to over 50 running metres in a match not suited for attacking play and came up with the match-clinching penalty win. Joseph Dweba also had a few powerful carries and was accurate at lineout time. Ben-Jason Dixon also conceded a cheap penalty but was busy defensively and at the breakdown.
Src: Planetrugby.com - https://www.planetrugby.com/news/bulls-v-stormers-five-takeaways-as-springboks-prop-stocks-in-rude-health-while-defeat-highlights-the-need-for-handre-pollard
