Ken Borland

A magnificent performance by the Bulls saw them break the stranglehold of Leinster on the Celtic league as they stunned the European powerhouses 27-26 in their United Rugby Championship semifinal in Dublin on Friday night.

For the first time since 2017, Leinster’s usually bulging trophy cabinet will be empty and it will be the Bulls who advance to the URC final following a display for the ages in which they showed massive physicality and some marvellous attacking touches.

Having spent the week talking about how much they admire Leinster, who won the URC’s predecessor, the Pro14 for the last four years, the Bulls showed they were up for a fight from the start with mighty defence keeping Leinster out for 11 phases on their tryline.

Leinster did take the early lead through hooker Dan Sheehan’s try after a Ross Byrne grubber through caused chaos, and the Bulls struggled initially against some marginal refereeing calls that went the way of the home side.

But hooker Johan Grobbelaar’s masterful work at the breakdowns and eighthman Elrigh Louw’s massive carries sparked the Bulls and in 10 magical minutes in the second quarter they scored two tries to take a grip on the game.

Following a Grobbelaar turnover, Louw put in two great runs to put the Bulls on the front foot. The chance seemed wasted when fullback Canan Moodie, who had looked dangerous with ball-in-hand, tried to dot down with one hand and dropped the ball. Fortunately the Bulls had advantage and the tap-and-go penalty brought a marvellous moment of deception as Louw carried but then flipped the ball to Grobbelaar running the other way and he forced himself over for the try.

Then the Bulls attacked from deep through Moodie and Vorster, winning a ruck penalty. Chris Smit put the ball in the corner, Louw charged off the back of the lineout, and then made a strong carry from a ruck, before Marcell Coetzee went over for the try.

Leinster were down 7-17 but fought back through a try by midfield maestro Robbie Henshaw to trail 14-17 at halftime.

The pressure only mounted on the home side as the Bulls dominated the opening exchanges of the second half, only some streetwise tactics at the ruck preventing a try being scored. Leinster cleared their lines but conceded a scrum penalty. It had been the one area of the game where the Bulls had previously suffered much misfortune.

What followed was a terrible, decisive blow against Leinster. A massive rolling maul thundered to their line from 25 metres out, the referee going straight to a penalty try and yellow-carding lock and captain James Ryan.

The Bulls led 24-14 and then withstood fierce pressure from Leinster in their 22, stealing a couple of crunch lineouts five metres from their line.

Leinster did score a long-range try, wing Rory O’Laughlin rounding off a Jordan Larmour break, but veterans Morne Steyn, with a penalty, and Bismarck du Plessis, with a key turnover, sealed a shock defeat for the hosts.

Scorers

Leinster – Tries: Dan Sheehan, Robbie Henshaw, Rory O’Laughlin, Cian Healy. Conversions: Ross Byrne (2), Johnny Sexton.

Bulls – Tries: Johan Grobbelaar, Marcell Coetzee, penalty try. Conversions: Chris Smith (2). Penalties: Smith, Morne Steyn.

Cricket South Africa’s failure to find witnesses willing to testify against Mark Boucher was the most telling blow to the disciplinary proceedings against their men’s national coach that they abandoned on Tuesday, with the message from the embattled former wicketkeeper/batsman being that he hopes he can now just focus on the Proteas’ on-field performance.

Following the decisions of both Paul Adams and Enoch Nkwe to not take part in the disciplinary hearing, where their allegations would have been cross-examined, CSA announced on Tuesday that their “lawyers engaged with various other potential witnesses over the last month and concluded that none of the three charges [against Boucher] were sustainable.”

CSA chief executive Pholetsi Moseki issued a conciliatory statement and sources close to Boucher indicated that he also wanted to put the whole imbroglio behind him.

“CSA appreciates that it has been very difficult for Mark to deal with these charges hanging over his head over the last few months. CSA regrets this,” Moseki said.

“CSA is also appreciative of the fact that Mark has at all times conducted himself properly and professionally – refusing to be drawn into public debates about the charges and carrying out his duties with commitment and dedication.

“The performance of the Proteas men’s team over this period has been extremely impressive, particularly in the Test arena, and this speaks to the efforts of Mark, his support staff and the players,” Moseki said.

Boucher will thus see out the remainder of his contract as Proteas head coach, which runs until after the World Cup in November 2023, and is eager for there to be détente now between him and CSA.

“It’s all systems go and everything has been normalised as far as Mark is concerned,” a source close to Boucher told The Citizen on condition of anonymity.

“He wants to put cricket first now, just focus on his job as a coach. He is hoping that cricket will be the only focus now.”

Boucher admitted that CSA’s efforts to cut him adrift had severely discomfited him. While trying to stabilise the Proteas team following the tumultuous events of 2019, Boucher also had to fight a war, raging over his own head, against his employers.

“The last few months have been extremely difficult to endure for me and my family,” Boucher said in a statement. “I am glad the process has finally come to an end and that CSA has accepted that the charges against me are unsustainable.

“The allegations of racism that were levelled against me were unjustified and have caused me considerable hurt and anguish,” Boucher said.

Not chasing wickets but focusing on his lines and lengths was the key to left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj’s extraordinary performance that ripped through Bangladesh on the final day of the first Test against South Africa at Kingsmead in Durban on Monday.

Bangladesh resumed on a poor 11/3 on the final morning and crashed to a venue record low of 53 all out in 55 minutes as Maharaj took 7/32 in 10 overs, the best figures in Tests between the two countries.

“There was a bit of spin on offer but it was more about bowling consistent lines and lengths,” Maharaj said. “You know you’re going to get wickets all the time, it was just about being patient.

“I was in a good space with how the ball was coming out, but when you don’t get reward, like in the first innings, then it can lead to a bit of frustration.

“But the emotion I showed was more about my hunger and desire to win a game for my country. It’s hard work and toil and about sticking to the processes,” Maharaj said after the second-best haul of wickets of his career.

Maharaj and Simon Harmer became the first pair of South Africans to be the only two bowlers used to bowl out a team, and Maharaj said when you have a man with 750 first-class wickets at the other end, it is advisable to tap into his knowledge as well.

“It’s always nice having a double-spin attack and the control of Simon was especially good. He had a really good game and he has come back a different type of bowler and player.

“He’s a world-class spinner, you can see that with the shapes and lines of his bowling. He’s a huge addition to the team and it’s nice to see how we each see things out there.

“He has good ideas, he’s fun in the changeroom and just a great asset to have in the team. My local knowledge can then take things a bit further and it was good to see our adaptability to get us across the line.

“It was very emotional for me, I love playing here in Durban, my home, and it was even more special for my family to be here.

“Our record has not been great here, so I’ll be very pleased if we have changed some mindsets and hopefully the guys now want to come back here,” Maharaj said.

The Sharks saw off Benetton Treviso comfortably enough, 24-7, in their United Rugby Championship match at the Stadio Monigo on Saturday night, but it was a performance lacking assurance and they only managed to secure the bonus point in the 79^th minute after scoring three tries in the first half.

A diffident, careless second half

Having led 21-0 at halftime, and enjoying 60% of possession and territory, the Sharks were left defending for vast stretches of the second half. Benetton admittedly lifted their intensity in their second half and travel fatigue may have been a factor for the Sharks. But the Springbok-laden visitors lacked direction and fluency in the second half, flyhalf Curwin Bosch not really fulfilling his role as a general.

Am & Fassi’s attacking genius the Sharks’ inlet into the game

The Sharks, despite dominating territory and possession in the first half, battled to break down a well-organised Benetton team. It was the magic produced by outside centre Lukhanyo Am and fullback Aphelele Fassi that provided them with the key incisions.

A wonderful run by Am that saw him knife through a maze of defenders ended with midfield partner Marius Louw stopped just short of the line. But from a five-metre scrum, lock Ruben van Heerden then scored.

The Sharks’ second try, in the 26^th minute, came thanks to Fassi showing superb feet down the left touchline when he did not have much space to work with.

The Sharks’ bonus point try, with just a minute left in the match, was again provided by Am with his long pass out wide to Sbu Nkosi finding the powerful wing outside his man.

More refereeing bad luck

South Africans do tend to blame refereeing for most things going wrong on a rugby field. But our complaints about inconsistent officiating certainly seem justified given the range of baffling decisions being experienced in Europe.

While referee Andrew Brace was excellent overall, he denied the Sharks what became a crucial try in the third quarter, ruling there was separation between the hand and the ball when prop Ox Nche dotted down after great charges by him and fellow front-rower Thomas du Toit. Replay after replay failed to show what the referee had seemingly seen and talked his TMO into accepting.

It was a momentum-shifting call as Benetton then piled on the pressure, leading to Am being yellow-carded and the home side’s only try, scored by lock Carl Wegner from close range.

Credit to Benetton

The Italians have lost most of their side to their national squad and were fielding several academy players and even some drawn from other clubs. Their scrum was particularly hard hit, but put in a gutsy performance, only conceding a couple of penalties. Against such a star-studded team, their hearts were definitely in the contest and Benetton Treviso deserve credit for making the Sharks look ordinary for long stretches.

Scorers

Benetton Treviso: Try – Carl Wegner. Conversion – Tomas Albornoz.

Sharks: Tries – Ruben van Heerden, Aphelele Fassi, Phepsi Buthelezi, Sbu Nkosi. Conversions – Curwin Bosch (3). Penalty – Bosch.