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Ken Borland



Bulls have played some fine rugby, but lessons from Italy need to be taken on board – Kriel 0

Posted on October 13, 2021 by Ken

The Bulls have overcome all manner of pressure and played some fine rugby, becoming a real pain in the neck for their South African rivals, but if there is one performance where fingers could be pointed at them for not pitching, it was the Rainbow Cup final against Benetton Treviso in June. But fullback David Kriel said on Tuesday that the squad has taken those lessons from Italy on board.

They will need to have learnt from the harsh lesson they were dished out that day because, in their first trip overseas since Super Rugby in March 2020 they were humbled 35-8 by Treviso, who were considered no-hopers before the game. And now on Saturday they face the might of Leinster at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin in their first ever United Rugby Championship match.

“It’s another opportunity for us to build on what we learnt from the Benetton Treviso game, which was not our best performance. But we took it as a stepping stone and an opportunity for growth. It was a challenging experience but good for the squad. This time around we want to be more clinical and play like the championship side we are.

“It’s comforting that this time we are in Europe for a while, we can get used to the conditions and the lifestyle, and it will certainly benefit the squad being together for a whole month. Personally, it allows me to be like a sponge and soak up the lessons while I’m still young. We are the Currie Cup champions, we must own it and we know that Leinster will want to show they are better than us,” Kriel said.

Given their pedigree, with five European titles and being one of only four teams to ever defend the European Cup, no-one is ever going to err by considering Leinster the underdogs when they take on a Bulls side that has swept all aside at home but is yet to prove themselves overseas.

And the 22-year-old Kriel is certainly aware of how imperious Leinster have been in dominating the Pro14 that preceded the URC.

“Growing up I would always watch a quality side like Leinster. Someone like Johnny Sexton is still playing, but previously those great centres Brian O’Driscoll and Gordon D’Arcy played for Leinster too. So I’m a bit nervous about playing against them, but also very excited for the opportunity.

“The Currie Cup prepared us for lots of high-ball catching and the URC sides love that too, so as outside backs we’ve been working hard to make sure we don’t make mistakes there. Otherwise, as a fullback you’re not necessarily in the game for the whole 80 minutes, so I just try to be everywhere looking for work, wherever I can be used,” Kriel said.

Bulls & Lions get their waggle on 0

Posted on August 03, 2016 by Ken

 

Social media was overflowing with praise for the Hurricanes and the Crusaders after their enthralling match in Wellington on Saturday morning, but the Bulls and Lions showed that evening at Loftus Versfeld that South African sides can also put on a show and both Victor Matfield and Johan Ackermann were waggling their metaphorical fingers at all the prophets of doom over the strength of local rugby.

The Bulls edged out the Lions 35-33 in a scintillating match in which seven tries were scored, several of them dazzling efforts using the width of the field and featuring superb offloading skills and vision.

“I saw the Hurricanes play the Crusaders this morning and I thought ‘what a great game’. But people must have enjoyed this game too, there was a lot of width and ball-in-hand rugby. New players are standing up in South African rugby and I’m sure the senior guys will start hitting their best form too towards the end of Super Rugby,” Bulls captain Matfield said after the win which returned his side to the top of the South African Conference.

“I think we have a different physicality when it comes to the rucks and scrums here in South Africa, whereas it’s more of a free-for-all when they play each other in New Zealand. They have a different mindset over there, the defences aren’t so tight. I still believe the best South African players compare to theirs and especially when you put them in a Springbok jersey,” Lions coach Ackermann said.

The Bulls started the game in exhilarating fashion playing the sort of rugby usually associated with the free-spirited Lions and coach Frans Ludeke said he was delighted with the first half, which ended with the home side 25-13 up.

“The first half was almost perfect and we had those attacking shapes Victor’s been chasing, we were accurate and really put them on the back foot. Getting momentum on the gain-line really helped and Victor has worked really hard on keeping the players on their feet and making good decisions,” Ludeke said.

But the Lions totally dominated the third quarter to snatch a 26-25 lead in the 54th minute and Matfield said the pressure was then really on his side.

“We started well, playing the way we wanted to – with width, but after the break we made mistakes and that put us under pressure. We showed great character to fight back and get the momentum back and I was very happy about the team’s will to win,” the veteran lock said.

Matfield mentioned “needing magic from someone” to get the Bulls out of their hole and that someone was replacement Pierre Spies, who sparked the move that ended with him powering through several tackles to score and regain the lead.

Ackermann bemoaned mistakes that cost his team but was pleased with their overall performance and contribution to a great game of rugby.

“All I ask is for them to play with their hearts and they did. I’m willing to lose if the passion and commitment are there and credit to the Bulls, especially for that first half. They punished every mistake we made,” Ackermann said.

 

Hurricanes have fingers & thumbs everywhere, but Bulls pay dearly for one stray hand 0

Posted on August 24, 2015 by Ken

 

The Hurricanes got away with their fingers and thumbs being in all the wrong places in the rucks, while the Bulls paid dearly for one hand allegedly sliding ever-so-slightly out of play as they went down 17-13 to the Wellington-based side in their Vodacom SuperRugby match at Loftus Versfeld on Friday night.

Replacement lock Grant Hattingh had slid over in the left-hand corner in the 77th minute for a ‘try’ that would have put the Bulls 18-17 up with the conversion to come, but Australian referee Andrew Lees, who gave a sub-standard performance throughout, referred the decision upstairs.

South African TMO Johan Greeff, famous for messing up high-profile television replays in the past, ruled that Hattingh’s hand had brushed the touchline before dotting down the ball, although the evidence certainly didn’t confirm this.

But even though the Bulls did not get the rub of the green when it came to decisions by the officials, this was a game they did not deserve to win. Everyone was really expecting them to up their game after last weekend’s shock defeat at the hands of the Stormers, but if anything they were worse against a disappointing Hurricanes team.

The Bulls had enough possession and territory to put the Hurricanes away, but they invariably messed up on attack through poor handling, a lack of protection for the ball at the ruck, or just plain bad decision-making.

The signs were not good for the Bulls from the outset as they spent the opening minutes in the Hurricanes half but had nothing to show for it as they kept turning over possession.

The 11 774 spectators started to get restless as the Hurricanes then picked up two penalties (6-0) by flyhalf Beauden Barrett when they visited Bulls territory, but it was Handre Pollard, the home side’s most potent attacking threat, who snatched a 10-6 lead with nine minutes left in the first half.

The flyhalf first of all slotted a brilliant penalty from the halfway line and then knifed through for a try, which he converted, after the Bulls looked set to waste the strong counter-attacking runs made by fullback Jesse Kriel and flank Lappies Labuschagne.

Beauden Barrett did pull a penalty back (9-10) just before the break as the Bulls scrum disintegrated on Morne Mellet’s loosehead side twice in succession.

The Bulls’ scrum did get better in the final quarter when Dean Greyling and Callie Visagie came on, but the lack of set-piece momentum, a couple of crucial lineouts also going astray, certainly hurt the home side.

Barrett regained the lead (12-10) for the Hurricanes with a 47th-minute penalty before it was Pollard’s turn three minutes later to slot a penalty and put the Bulls 13-12 up.

The decisive moment as far as the visitors were concerned came in the 67th minute as the Bulls messed up their own lineout throw deep in their own half and a period of sustained pressure saw the Hurricanes awarded a penalty.

Wing Julian Savea had only popped up sporadically up till then, but he took a quick tap penalty and Victor Matfield, Piet van Zyl and Bjorn Basson were not up to the task of stopping the powerful All Black from scoring the match-winning try.

The Bulls swarmed back on to attack but their failure to protect their ball at the breakdown hindered their efforts to break through. Eventually there was enough space on the outside for Hattingh to dive over, but TMO Greeff ruled he had slid his hand on to the touchline at the same time or before he dotted down the ball.

At a ruck shortly thereafter, inside the Hurricanes half, replacement scrumhalf Rudi Paige was blatantly pulled into the melee but referee Lees gave the penalty to the Hurricanes instead.

It’s the sort of bad luck the Bulls are having at the moment, but the bottom line is that they are not playing well enough to win.

 

 

 

 

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    1 John 2:5 – “But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him.”

    James 2:14 – “What good is it if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds?”.

    Love without action is useless.

    If you love God unreservedly, you will offer your best to him and be willing to serve him wherever he wishes to use you.

    Love has to manifest itself practically.

    “Love requires uplifting and inspirational deeds.

    “How genuine can your love for God truly be if you are aware of a serious need and do nothing to alleviate it?”- Solly Ozrovech, A Shelter From The Storm



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