Bulls batter brainless Brumbies
9 May 2008
The Bulls produced their finest performance of their campaign to down the Brumbies 28-17.
Australian teams are renowned for their intelligence and street smarts but that was certainly not in evidence at Loftus this evening. Instead it was the Bulls who boxed smarter, tackled harder, contested the breakdowns with greater intensity and showed a clinical edge with their scoring opportunities in a polished performance.
The Bulls looked the brighter in the early exchanges, troubling the Brumbies at the set phases and matching them in the collisions – blunting their ability to offload in the tackle and generate continuity.
But the Brumbies gradually dragged themselves back into the contest, thanks in large part to the Bulls’ ill-discipline, which saw them lose Zane Kirchner and Derick Kuun to the sin-bin in the first half.
However, instead of the Brumbies capitalising on that significant advantage, it was the depleted Bulls who put 10 points on the board, while the Brumbies managed just a penalty. Credit has to go to the Bulls’ defensive effort for repelling incessant waves attack, but poor handling and shocking execution in good field positions saw the Brumbies score just three points while playing against 14 men for 20 minutes of the first half.
They’ll lament their inability to punish the Bulls, but that has much to do with the youthfulness of their side. The senior heads needed to encourage them to stay composed and patient. Instead there was a desperation about their play when they had the advantage that cost them in the final equation.
The Bulls were on the scoreboard by the fourth minute, JP Nel crossing after the Bulls had sucked defenders in with a couple of phases in the Brumbies 22m. The ball was recycled to Wynand Olivier who spotted the overlap out wide and threw a long pass to Nel, who carried a defender over the tryline on his back.
Morne Steyn and Stirling Mortlock traded penalties before the Brumbies scored through Alister Campbell. The Bulls slipped a tackle in midfield, allowing the Brumbies to get the ball out to the wing. The visitors set up a phase and recycled quickly – Tyrone Smith finding Campbell running a superb angle.
Kirchner was pinned for a dangerous tackle in the build-up and earned an unwanted rest. His side, however, showed bags of character to be the next to score – Wikus van Heerden driving through a ruck on the tryline following some outstanding build up play.
The Brumbies surged into the Bulls’ 22m and camped there for seven minutes. However all they could show for their effort was three points and the consolation of having Derick Kuun sin-binned for repeated infringements.
Steyn kicked a penalty just after half-time, but the Brumbies looked the better side.
When they controlled the play through the phases they troubled the Bulls. They also found some joy from numerous inside passes from flyhalf Christian Lealiifano to strike runners who routinely crossed the gain line. Sadly that seemed to be the only avenue of attack that that they profited from.
The Bulls shored up their defence as the half progressed and delivered a number of punishing tackles that rocked the Brumbies ball carriers. The Australians looked every bit as clueless as they had against the Stormers last week and just never looked like unhinging the Bulls’ line from structured play.
That pressure defence sucked the fight out of the Brumbies and the Bulls grabbed their third try through Olivier who received the ball 15m out from goal, dummied a pass to his outside and stepped inside the cross cover to score. The Brumbies grabbed a consolation try but the contest was over at that stage.
The Brumbies never asked the right questions this evening but the Bulls will certainly be mulling over one: where were these types of performances all season?
Bulls - Try: JP Nel, Wikus van Heerden, Wynand Olivier. Conversion: Morne Steyn (2). Penalty: Morne Steyn (3)
Brumbies - Try: Alister Campbell, Peter Kimlin. Conversion: Stirling Mortlock (2). Penalty: Mortlock.
By Ryan Vrede
232 Comments
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10 May 2008, 05:22 am
Thought I’d post this as a spoke in the die hard NH conservative wheel
Sorry about the long post
Join the ELVs evolution
Posted Thu, 08 May 2008
rugby365 columnist, and former Springbok centre, Robbie Fleck hopes the Experimental Law Variations will catch on around the world – after all, it could only benefit the game and its global appeal.
As the league phase of the Super 14 nears completion, I must say that I have thoroughly enjoyed the 2008 season.
Not only has it turned into one of the closest competitions we have seen for some time – the Crusaders’ dominance aside – but I think the introduction of the Experimental Law Variations (ELVs) has added a whole new dimension to the Super 14.
As a former Bath player I tend to keep an eye on things up north, but I must say when a Heineken Cup or Guinness Premiership match comes on these days I tend to turn onto the highlights channel or catch an IPL match – it’s more entertaining!
Let’s face it, the ELVs have helped liven up the Super 14 and the sooner they are introduced up north, the better – although I’m sure ex-England hooker Brian Moore will be dreading that day…
Moore, a columnist in England’s Daily Telegraph, slated the ELVs in his latest missive and I must say, it’s pretty disappointing to see a respected critic like Moore basically dismiss these new law changes without actually experiencing it properly for himself.
Regular readers of this column would remember how I slated the ELVs after one weekend of the Super 14 and one match into the Varsity Cup – where we played under the full version of the ELVs – but that was more because of a lack of understanding than anything else. I have said as much already and I am something of a convert these days – thanks mainly to me being involved during the Varsity Cup as a coach at UCT.
Give those moaning up north one season under the ELVs and watch how much they will enjoy it.
Could you imagine the top players in France, England, Ireland and Wales playing under the ELVs? Have any of you seen a guy like England flyhalf Danny Cipriani play? He would cook under the ELVs; as would the Welsh backs (Shane Williams and co.), and not to mention Brian O’Driscoll, Gordon D’Arcy and Geordan Murphy of Ireland – it would be phenomenal.
With the success of the new Twenty20 cricket competition in India (the Indian Premier League), rugby, now, more than ever, needs to become more exciting and simpler to follow, and the ELVs could just help make rugby more attractive to the rest of the world. How exciting would that be?
It’s very important that the various role-players across the globe embrace the Experimental Law Variations – the Super 14 is a great example of why. Take the Stormers; Rassie Erasmus and Gary Gold started working on playing under the ELVs last year already, well over three months before the Super 14 even kicked off. The rugby they have played is pulling in sold out crowds at Newlands on a weekly basis and the Stormers brand is booming again – as it was in 1999.
Then, take a look at the Bulls this year – they have not stopped moaning since the start of the Super 14. Where are they on the log?
Do you see my point?
South African teams don’t historically cope well with change and the reason the Bulls, the Lions and the Cheetahs find themselves at the bottom of the Super 14 table is directly linked to them not embracing the law changes and therefore not bothering to work on playing under the ELVs.
The Sharks and the Stormers have bright, innovative coaches, all of whom have embraced the ELVs – the other three teams need to do the same, and quickly, or next year could be yet another long and winless Super 14 for them…
10 May 2008, 05:49 am
Hi Guys
10 May 2008, 06:10 am
#202 CoachPete:
Did you get those mails?
10 May 2008, 06:15 am
Hi Piet Got yours but not RP’s
10 May 2008, 06:23 am
im ready for the mornings rugby,written 9000 words for 2 essays, watched 4 episodes of nip/tuck, now for some rugby!!!
10 May 2008, 06:31 am
#204 CoachPete:
Strange, she copied me with a message sent to you….
10 May 2008, 07:18 am
morning all
10 May 2008, 07:20 am
morning actually late night here
10 May 2008, 07:24 am
where u from coach?
10 May 2008, 07:28 am
California USA but originally Cape Town
10 May 2008, 07:35 am
Good post Skopscat… but whilst we are now blessed with a situation in cricket where we can choose our poison… ie test, 50 or 20… is the humble game of rugga going to be continually changed to try and placate our diverse and every whim?
IMO… leave it as 7′s and 22 man old school rugga… if neither of that tickles your fancy then watch league… or AFL… if neither of those versions of the oblong ball appeal… then by all means watch any of the thousand other sports… but please… LEAVE 22man TEST RUGBY UNION AS IT IS!
10 May 2008, 07:40 am
ok-=–what was the stroy of the attack on a sister of a player-do u have a link
10 May 2008, 07:52 am
thanks coach-i asusme ure a stormer then-im in randburg in SA-sharksman
10 May 2008, 07:58 am
The Ultimate road to 2008 S14 Final :
1.Crusaders 2.Stormers 3.Hurricanes 4.Sharks
Semi 1 : Sharks beat Crusaders in Christchurch
Semi 2 : Stormers beat Hurricanes in Cpt
Final : Sharks beat Stormers in Cpt
10 May 2008, 08:26 am
Gerhardt
It’s very early in the morning to be smoking doob my friend.
10 May 2008, 08:28 am
#213 Gerhardt:
Hahahahaha. That would be impressive
10 May 2008, 08:34 am
oops …and now my coffee is cold
10 May 2008, 09:56 am
Aiy yay yay. “Bulls Batter Brainless Brumbies”. I thought wow, the Bulls must have put 50 on the Brumbies and the Brumbies must have had at least 3 players sin-binned. Then I discover the Bulls ONLY won 28-17 and the Bulls were ‘brainless’ in having 2 players sent off. Where have all these silly alliterations suddenly come from? But I wouldn’t mind if today’s heading reads “Sharks Smash Clueless Cheetahs” or “Sharks Shooting to Semis”.
10 May 2008, 10:11 am
….but the Sharks actually LOST to the Brumbies!
as well as the one that REALLY mattered, when they played against the supposedly brasinless ones last year, didn’t they.
20-19
10 May 2008, 10:24 am
214 Jinx da Lynx
Thats put a smile on my face.GO STORMERS!!!!
10 May 2008, 11:11 am
Well done to the Bullies. Nice to see them playing better rugga.
10 May 2008, 11:27 am
#218 St.Petersburgbok: if your comment is in response to #217, I was commenting on the unbefitting heading, not the Bulls. Sheesh, don’t get so defensive bru.
10 May 2008, 11:32 am
Great stuff… Dare I say meisiekind is hitting the form of his life!!! Great try. bamboozled Mortlock.
10 May 2008, 11:46 am
Sharks are going to really regret losing to this brumbies team.
10 May 2008, 11:55 am
#223 underdog: Have to agree underdog – they should have taken 5 from that game (with the dodgy ref calls, they just imploded in the second half). Would have had them on 36/37 points.
But congrats to the Bulls – it was good to see them playing good rugby again and i liked the way they were moving the ball around. A lot of players showed their worth, but I must say the two Ndungane brothers are improving with every season in the big league – it’s great.
10 May 2008, 14:34 pm
Ryan,
If that was the Bulls best performance we’re still in the dark ages.
For one thing, we were outplay for most of the game in the loose by that man George Smith. Wikus fought bravely and Stegmann tried his damnedest, but Piere Spies was nowhere in the first half and at best was mediocre in the second, with his only notable contribution carrying the ball when he received an outside pass from Habana to cut across field for a net gain of ten yards when he could’ve scored if he had the balls to go for it.
He spends most of the match pushing at opponents in the rucks and mauls or lying across players on the ground like the hot-air-filled substitute for the-player-he-might-have-been-in-the-past he is. Cummon FL, we want the real deal. Stop short-changing us. Give us Dewald Potgieter for the match against the Cheetahs. You owe it to us- the few who did not summarily dissmiss you from the outset.
One gets the impression the Bulls are playing Spies ahead of youngsters like the blond tornado just for the sake of giving him exposure to show he is over his clots in the hope that he gets picked purely on reputation by PdV so that they are at least rid of him. What other reason can there be, because he sure as hell is nowhere near the form that Potgieter(coming on as sub for 30 minutes against the Crusaders) and about five other SA 8′s have shown this year- Kanko, Vermeulen, Watson, Big Joe and Alberts.
I for one am waiting to see which team the Bulls are gonna field against the Cheetahs. Vermeulen will kill Spies on current form while a fit and ready Potgieter will have to sit and watch from the stands, not even the bench, like the past two weeks. What a farce!
11 May 2008, 10:52 am
Maak al die Bulle Bokke!!
11 May 2008, 11:57 am
A couple of publications had wikus van heerden followed by Spies as picks for the man of the match.
Jack Sparrow….are you actually Dewald Potgieter?
11 May 2008, 13:20 pm
#227,
Sorry to disappoint you, but I am someone who knows the real thing when I see it. Mark my words, he doesn’y need an old **** like me to sing his praises. I reckon he’ll be doing his own talking in the Currie Cup this year.
As for the publication, I wipe my backside with them.
11 May 2008, 13:27 pm
#227 And as for you, what type of idiot are you to try and embarrass the young man like that. probably the type that believes everything he reads in the “Bullshit” press.
12 May 2008, 01:26 am
I thought Spies had a stormer of game – the role of a 8thman is to carry ball up strongly and get across the gain line to pull in defenders- he did this consistently all night. His tackling was great – as was teh rest of teh Bulls pack – who made sure the won the collison every time.
It is noce to see them playing like men who believe in themself and their abilities – like champions in fact. Pity they have no chance of a semi now…
Jack Sparrow – I have not seen Potgieter play – but you are also worng to diss Spies because of his performance, when in fact it was bloody good.
12 May 2008, 01:29 am
#201 skopskiet:
Skopskiet when I watch Top 14 games or Magners league or heinken rugby after just having watched S14 rugby – it looks like it is in slow motion. If the SA players which are used to playing under the ELV’s play against NH teams now – they will run rings around them.
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