Ken Borland

The Bulls produced a display of precision and power to beat the Cheetahs 30-25 in Bloemfontein and put themselves on the brink of claiming the Vodacom SuperRugby South African Conference title and a home playoff match.

The Bulls, thanks to their combative forwards, who dominated the gain line and the lineouts, were in control for most of the crunch encounter and led 30-13 going into the last 10 minutes.

Tries by flyhalf Riaan Smit, after magical hands by inside centre Robert Ebersohn, and prop Trevor Nyakane then claimed a bonus point for the Cheetahs and kept them above the Crusaders in fifth place on the overall standings.

But for the other 70 minutes, they seldom threatened the Bulls line. The Cheetahs seemed to be drowning in a sea of blue defenders, every collision seemingly another metre gained by the Bulls, and the Thick Blue Line was no laughing matter for an increasingly desperate home side.

The one area where the Cheetahs did dominate, however, was in the scrums and Coenie Oosthuizen, Adriaan Strauss, Lourens Adriaanse and Trevor Nyakane were all rewarded with Springbok call-ups shortly after the game.

It’s clearly an area of concern for the Bulls as it will allow whoever they face in the playoffs to target a specific area of weakness, and coach Frans Ludeke hauled loosehead prop Dean Greyling off the field as early as the 44th minute.

But while Greyling and Werner Kruger are struggling in the scrums, it doesn’t seem to be costing the Bulls games … yet. And besides, Greyling and Kruger are at the forefront of the massive hits the Bulls tight forwards put in on the gain line and one can understand Ludeke’s reluctance to jettison them completely.

Hooker Chiliboy Ralepelle is also not renowned for his scrummaging, but his open play is outstanding and it was his charge through the defence that allowed the Bulls to make the breakthrough in the eighth minute, as Kruger barged over the tryline.

The only time the Bulls defence looked as if it might be breached was when the Cheetahs’ roaming wing Willie le Roux had the ball in hand. He scored from a typical piece of individual brilliance in the 13th minute when, with nothing much on, he chipped over the defence and gathered to score under the poles.

But the next five minutes were dominated by the Bulls’ direct runners, so strong with ball in hand (lock Flip van der Merwe in particular), and the inevitable ruck penalty saw Morné Steyn kick for the corner, the rolling maul put in place and flank Deon Stegmann scoring.

The Cheetahs were still in touch at 10-17 down at half-time, but with the hugely talented Jan Serfontein in white-hot form at inside centre, the shell-shocked home side soon found themselves 30-13 down after two penalties by Steyn and a try by Jano Vermaak that had its roots in the 20-year-old crashing through the home line. There was also great interplay between replacement forwards Grant Hattingh and Dewald Potgieter, who were both able to come on and make a major impact, with the latter throwing a precision pass for the scrumhalf to complete the try.

The Stormers emerged victorious (19-11) from their arm-wrestle with the Southern Kings at a sodden Newlands, fullback Joe Pietersen kicking 14 points in blustery conditions and ensuring the visitors were kept in their own half for much of the game.

Flank Deon Fourie also scored a try, but the Stormers were victorious because they won the kicking battle, their set-pieces were better and they shaded the collisions.

The Kings were determined and skilful, and can point to two gross misfortunes having a material impact on the outcome.

Flyhalf Demetri Catrakilis, part of the Springbok training camp and very close to selection for the final squad according to Heyneke Meyer, had a recurrence of his calf injury and pulled out just before the game and left the Kings without a major weapon for the kicking and territorial battle.

And Fourie’s try came from a rolling maul after the Stormers had been given a lineout throw five metres from the line when replacement scrumhalf Dewaldt Duvenhage’s chip deflected off a Kings defender and rolled into the corner.

The Kings had the Stormers under pressure in the closing minutes, scoring through flank Wimpie van der Walt after a lineout drive, but flyhalf George Whitehead missed the crucial conversion and the visitors had the chance to kick a penalty for the losing bonus point but went for the try instead and lost the ball.

Jean de Villiers had another inspirational game for the Stormers at outside centre, although clearly no one had much fun in the awful conditions.

The Kings can now concentrate all their resources on the almost-inevitable promotion/relegation matches they will have to play against the Lions at the end of July.

And it looks like they will need them after the Lions demolished Samoa 74-14 at Ellis Park.

While one can never read too much into such a one-sided game, the fact that the Samoans were all at sea in the set-pieces and defending out wide suggests the Lions have weapons that can really hurt the Kings.

Super Rugby Logs – after Round 16:

Combined Log

South African Conference

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There will be no lack of commitment, passion nor fire – nor even skill – when the Cheetahs meet the Bulls on Saturday in a potential decider for the South African SuperRugby conference.

The competition will then take a break for the June Tests and the humdinger in Bloemfontein is a perfect way to go into the recess. The Cheetahs are currently five points behind the Bulls so, with just three rounds remaining once the franchises return to action, it is imperative Naka Drotske’s men win in order to ensure the three-time champions don’t start running away with the conference title.

While both sets of forwards are phenomenally powerful in the collisions, the Cheetahs have the stronger scrum and a backline that is more likely to create something out of nothing. The Bulls have the most efficient lineout in the competition, but there is another key area where they have the edge.

The Cheetahs lack a general of the calibre of Morné Steyn at flyhalf and, as talented as Elgar Watts is, he lacks the experience and the masterful boot that his Springbok counterpart will surely bring to what is going to be a tight contest, played with the same intensity as a final.

With the announcement of the Springbok squad for those June Tests happening within an hour of the end of the Bulls/Cheetahs clash, there are also some intriguing individual clashes that could decide who gets a place in Heyneke Meyer’s match-day 22 and who doesn’t.

The most obvious of these contests in the match will be at inside centre where Jan Serfontein comes up against Robert Ebersohn; the physically strong young upstart against the silky skills and clever reading of the game that characterises Ebersohn after six years in SuperRugby.

The arrival of Lappies Labuschagné as an outstanding loose forward also sets up an intriguing battle with Bulls youngster Arno Botha, a member of last year’s Springbok squad for the Rugby Championship and the end-of-year tour but still uncapped. The reward of a place on the bench against Italy in Durban next weekend could be up for grabs.

A top-class Cheetahs loose trio also features Philip van der Walt and Heinrich Brüssow, who both also have plenty to prove after not getting a call-up from Meyer for the national training camps, a sad oversight in many people’s eyes.

While loose forward is, as usual, a department where the Springboks have a wealth of riches, there is a potential opening at fullback.

Willie le Roux is playing left wing for the Cheetahs, but he has a roaming role and if he can breach a superb Bulls defence on attack, make his tackles and absorb a probable aerial bombardment, then he might just encourage Meyer to take a chance on him at international level.

Hennie Daniller is also a solid figure at fullback for the Cheetahs, while Springbok incumbent Zane Kirchner could make a return to SuperRugby off the bench after a finger operation.

The Bulls scrum, up against the mightily impressive Coenie Oosthuizen, Adriaan Strauss and Lourens Adriaanse, will be a concern for Frans Ludeke and the coach has chosen an all-Springbok trio of Werner Kruger, Chiliboy Ralepelle and Dean Greyling in the front row.

The Bulls lineout makes up for any shortcomings there, however, with Juandré Kruger, Flip van der Merwe, Pierre Spies and Ralepelle forming a superb unit.

The visitors are unlikely not to see enough of the ball then in Bloemfontein, but where the game will be won or lost is in how and where the possession is used.

The Cheetahs have to absorb the slow-poison tactics of the Bulls and make sure they don’t fall into the trap of trying too much in their own half of the field. The iron wall of the Bulls defence and the pressure they exert at the breakdowns will then inevitably bring the boot of Steyn into play.

But if the Cheetahs are able to spend lengthy periods in the Bulls’ 22, then they have the attacking weapons to score the tries that move the scoreboard along even quicker.

The Stormers and the Southern Kings meet earlier on Saturday at Newlands in the only other match involving South African teams this weekend.

The Kings will be without regular captain Luke Watson, who has withdrawn due to flu. He has been replaced by Jacques Engelbrecht, but that will only help as the Cape Town-born 27-year-old brings exactly the sort of physicality and power that is needed against the Stormers, especially if the weather is as wet as most people in the area are predicting.

The Kings are also without lock Steven Sykes, a real stalwart for them this season, and wing Siyanda Grey, but the Newlands faithful might want to shield the eyes of any women and children in the stadium as the Eastern Cape side are going to bring a ferocious attitude as this really is their last chance saloon when it comes to avoiding the promotion/relegation game.

The Stormers are already 10 points in front of the Kings, so victory on Saturday will put to bed any fears that they won’t be in SuperRugby next year.

The home side, despite their lowly 11th position in the standings, showed last weekend in holding off the title-chasing Reds that there is still plenty of spirit and ability in the Stormers camp.

With this game likely to be won in the trenches, Stormers coach Allister Coetzee has brought more experience back into the pack with Deon Fourie returning to the loose trio and De Kock Steenkamp back in the second row.

The reliable Steenkamp will be in the number five jersey, meaning Eben Etzebeth, who made such an impression there in last weekend’s game, will be back at the front of the lineout. Whether he will play in the same position in the Springbok side remains to be seen.

The Stormers have shown some inconsistency in the set-pieces, which is where the Kings could attack them, and the loose trio of Nizaam Carr, Fourie and Siya Kolisi will also have their hands full stopping the big ball-runners coming their way – Engelbrecht, Wimpie van der Walt and Cornell du Preez.

The weather forecast is awful, however, so the boots of Stormers fullback Joe Pietersen and Kings flyhalf Demetri Catrakilis could well have the final say.

Teams

Stormers (v Southern Kings, Saturday 15:05): Joe Pietersen, Gio Aplon, Jean de Villiers, Damian de Allende, Bryan Habana, Elton Jantjies, Louis Schreuder, Nizaam Carr, Deon Fourie, Siya Kolisi, De Kock Steenkamp, Eben Etzebeth, Brok Harris, Tiaan Liebenberg, Steven Kitshoff. Replacements: Martin Bezuidenhout, Chris Heiberg, Gerbrandt Grobler, Don Armand, Dewaldt Duvenage, Gary van Aswegen, Gerhard van den Heever.

Southern Kings (v Stormers, Saturday 15:05): SP Marais, Siviwe Soyizwapi, Ronnie Cooke, Andries Strauss, Marcello Sampson, Demetri Catrakilis, Nicolas Vergallo, Jacques Engelbrecht, Wimpie van der Walt, Cornell du Preez, David Bulbring, Darron Nell, Kevin Buys, Bandise Maku, Schalk Ferreira. Replacements: Hannes Franklin, Grant Kemp, Rynier Bernardo, Devin Oosthuizen, Shaun Venter, Shane Gates, George Whitehead.

Cheetahs (v Bulls, Saturday 17:10): Hennie Daniller, Raymond Rhule, Johann Sadie, Robert Ebersohn, Willie le Roux, Elgar Watts, Piet van Zyl, Philip van der Walt, Lappies Labuschagné, Heinrich Brüssow, Francois Uys, Lood de Jager, Lourens Adriaanse, Adriaan Strauss, Coenie Oosthuizen. Replacements: Ryno Barnes, Trevor Nyakane, Ligtoring Landman, Boom Prinsloo, Sarel Pretorius, Riaan Smit, Rayno Benjamin.

Bulls (v Cheetahs, Saturday 17:10pm): Jürgen Visser, Lionel Mapoe, JJ Engelbrecht, Jan Serfontein, Bjorn Basson, Morné Steyn, Francois Hougaard, Pierre Spies, Arno Botha, Deon Stegmann, Juandré Kruger, Flip van der Merwe, Werner Kruger, Chiliboy Ralepelle, Dean Greyling. Replacements: Callie Visagie, Frik Kirsten, Grant Hattingh, Dewald Potgieter, Jano Vermaak, Louis Fouché, Zane Kirchner.

Other fixtures: Crusaders v Waratahs (Friday 9.35am), Brumbies v Hurricanes (Friday 11.40am), Highlanders v Blues (Saturday 9.35am), Reds v Rebels (Saturday 11.40am).

Byes: Sharks, Chiefs, Force.

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