Ken Borland

Bulls flyhalf Chris Smith said on Monday that the team’s culture and care for each other was the source of their incredible determination that took them to a remarkable 22-20 victory over Western Province in their Currie Cup clash at Newlands at the weekend, despite the visitors having to play with 14 men for the last 35 minutes.

Smith was a key figure in the Bulls’ first triumph in Cape Town since 2009, not only kicking an angled last-minute conversion to win the match, but also shining in the final quarter with a couple of telling breaks and generally taking control of the contest.

“The hunger was obviously there in the team to fight to the end and to pull through for the win showed our desperation, our hunger and that we play for each other. That’s thanks to the culture of the team, we really care for each other. It was an incredible feeling because the Bulls have not beaten Western Province at Newlands in 11 years and I was 15 years old when Morne Steyn made the kick to win that one, at school just down the road at SACS.

“And for me to now make the winning kick was a very special moment in my career, an awesome feeling and I was very chuffed. I missed a similar one against the Free State Cheetahs, having been put on after Morne had kicked well from the start. Those are the big moments that you want to step up, but I learnt from it and moved forward, and I’m stoked it didn’t happen twice,” Smith said.

Smith admitted that it helped not having the usual passionate Newlands crowd cheering on Western Province … and trying to distract the opposition kicker at such a key moment.

“A big crowd can definitely fiddle with your mindset a bit, so it was nice to be able to kick in peace. But we’re a few games in now without having crowds so it has become normal. But a lot of players do get energy from the crowd, they find it highly motivating. The kick was a bit of a blur for me, but I tried to just stick to my process and I knew I had put in the prep.

“I’ve been very lucky to have a mentor like Morne Steyn, I learn from him daily. He’s been playing incredible rugby and is probably the form flyhalf in the country right now. So I’m just being a sponge because he’s a Springbok legend and an even bigger legend off the field, I just follow and learn from him. Having good players around me definitely makes life easier,” Smith said.

Knitting together a team that could win the Super Rugby Unlocked competition was coach Jake White’s first job, but this weekend the Bulls showed that they also have incredible character as they opened their Currie Cup campaign with a stunning victory over Western Province at Newlands despite playing with only 14 men for 35 minutes.

The Bulls were already up against it as Western Province’s powerful Springbok front row put plenty of heat on them at the scrums, and the home team were thoroughly dominating both territory and possession. And then loosehead prop Jacques van Rooyen was harshly red-carded for a poor tackle that was a bit late and didn’t have a lot of arms being used, but it was not the head-high cheap shot referee AJ Jacobs talked TMO Rasta Rasivhenge into seeing.

But the cruel blow galvanised the Bulls and they snatched a 22-20 win at the death to win at Newlands for the first time since 2009.

“It shows a lot of character to play with 14 men for 35 minutes against Western Province and still get the result. The players can be exceptionally proud and this result will probably stay in the memory banks for a long time. I told the players afterwards to just enjoy it. That sort of character comes from within, from the group itself.

“If everyone is happy and everyone feels part of the team then you can get that sort of result. People talk about the culture of a team and we are clearly a tight unit. I’m very proud of what they did. When we got the red card, I just said we must keep believing, I’ve been in similar positions before and I remember when I was with the Sharks we beat the Crusaders with 14 men in Christchurch. So I know it’s possible, but if you don’t believe, it won’t happen,” White said after the game.

While White, and most observers including a died-in-the-wool Western Province supporter like Schalk Burger senior on social media, felt the red card was not a fair decision, the Bulls coach seemed more concerned about a breakdown in the machines that are meant to relay all the officials’ decisions into the coach’s box.

“I heard the conversation between the referee and TMO and then all of a sudden it was switched off. But it sounded almost as if there was not agreement between the two. I don’t think a red card was justifiable, I’m not happy with the decision because Warrick Gelant was not hit on the head but on the shoulder.

“I was confused about the conversation the referee had with the TMO and then they turned the referee’s microphone off. But if you’re not 100% sure then it surely can’t be a red card … and then suddenly it was. There was a bit of inconsistency with other penalties as well, the breakdown was untidy, but we understood we weren’t going to get reward there and you have to take the good with the bad ones,” White said.

Sharks coach Sean Everitt praised replacement wing Sbu Nkosi for his performance against the Pumas in their Currie Cup match in Durban on Friday night, saying his brace of tries were a fitting demonstration of why the 24-year-old Springbok is a World Cup winner.

Nkosi has had his share of injury problems this year as well as a brush with Covid-19 that forced him into quarantine, necessitating Everitt’s decision to play him off the bench. But it seems inevitable the Sharks coach will be finding a way of fitting him into the starting line-up when they return to action against the Bulls in a fortnight.

Nkosi scored with his first touch in the 53^rd minute when he spectacularly claimed the restart after the Pumas’ only try and then blazed away to score, and then he scored again with 10 minutes remaining with an intercept try completed with impressive pace.

“Sbu’s performance tonight was definitely the highlight with his two tries, he was phenomenal and showed why he is a World Cup winner with the Springboks. What a difference he made for us, he’s world-class in the air. He helped us win in Kimberley as well against Griquas. We scored some good tries through big defence tonight and we’re ecstatic with scoring seven tries,” Everitt said after the impressive 45-10 victory.

Because the Currie Cup fixtures have merely been a continuation of Super Rugby Unlocked, the Sharks now quirkily have a bye after just one Currie Cup match. They then host the Bulls at Kings Park on December 12 and they will certainly need to be more consistent in maintaining the level of performance they showed in the first half against the Pumas for the full 80 minutes against the log-leaders.

“I’m very proud with how we stood up in the first half, conditions were not easy but we were brave enough to move the ball around and score some good tries through big defence. I’m very happy with the way we played in the first half, the forwards laid a really good platform and there were three maul tries, we scrummed well and stuck to the plan.

“For the second half, the plan was to stick to our processes but unfortunately the Pumas put us under the pump at the set-pieces. You have to give them credit for that, putting us under pressure in the second half, especially at the scrums. But we also put a lot of pressure on ourselves and we certainly could have been better in the second half. But to win 45-10 definitely deserves credit,” Everitt said.

The Sharks produced a clinical performance replete with seven tries as they thumped the Pumas 45-10 in their Currie Cup opener at Kings Park in Durban on Friday night, sticking to their tried and tested game-plan of exerting pressure through the kicking game.

The error-prone Pumas had their moments, but made too many mistakes with ball in hand and really struggled against the Sharks’ aerial bombardment, allowing the home side to set up camp in their territory.

While the Sharks using their kicking game has become the norm, what was most impressive about their performance on Friday night was the swarming, all-consuming defence that accompanied it. The Sharks players were so quick off their line, and they harried and hassled the Pumas throughout, which was the main reason for the number of errors made by the visitors.

The tone was set in the ninth minute when centre Jeremy Ward charged down a sluggish clearing kick by fullback Devon Williams and dotted down the loose ball for the opening try. Ward grabbed a brace of tries before halftime with a similarly opportunistic effort in the 23rd minute when tremendous defensive pressure – flank Dylan Richardson putting in a ferocious double tackle – resulted in the Pumas dropping the ball on their own line, the Sharks captain pouncing to put them 19-0 up.

A couple more maul tries gave the Sharks the security of a 31-3 lead at halftime and, even though their game was not as assured in the second half, their set-pieces letting them down, the win was never in question.

It’s also safe to say Springbok wing Sbu Nkosi is back firing on all cylinders as he scored two dazzling tries as a second-half substitute.

Nkosi scored with his first touch in the 53rd minute when he claimed the restart after the Pumas’ only try, by flank Phumzile Maqondwana from close range, and blazed through the defences to score. He then closed the scoring with an intercept try after the Sharks had conceded a scrum penalty, impressing with his sheer pace.

Scorers

Sharks: Tries – Jeremy Ward (2), Sanele Nohamba, Kerron van Vuuren, Dylan Richardson, Sbu Nkosi (2). Conversions – Curwin Bosch (5).

Pumas: Try – Phumzile Maqondwana. Conversion – Ginter Smuts. Penalty –Smuts.