Chiefs the Bulls’ biggest test
21 May 2012
RYAN VREDE writes the Chiefs’ all-round quality is something the Bulls have yet to encounter and it will require an almighty effort to win a critical encounter in Hamilton.
After two consecutive tour wins which elicited talk of their best-ever trip Down Under, the Bulls’ loss to the Highlanders at the weekend and victory for the Stormers in Cape Town makes Friday’s trip to Hamilton a crucial one in the context of their conference challenge.
The Chiefs’ emergence as arguably the tournament’s most complete side makes Friday’s task a daunting one. The influence of former All Blacks assistant coach Wayne Smith as well as the rise of talented forwards has seen the Chiefs exhibit a far more structured approach than they have in recent years.
Tactically they’ve generally been intelligent, patient and purposeful, combining a good kicking game with powerful forward play, while not losing their ability to dazzle in the back division and improving their defence markedly (second best record in the tournament). Continuity in selection, facilitated by luck with injuries in comparison to some other elite franchises, has amplified their challenge.
The Bulls are yet to face a team that is as comprehensively equipped and doing so away from home heightens their challenge. Certainly the Stormers and Crusaders – their most testing assignments to date – are high quality opposition. But the Cape side’s attacking struggles have been well documented, while the Christchurch outfit were still in the process of finding their stride when they lost at Loftus.
Much of the public and media focus will be on Sonny Bill Williams, who features prominently in the statistics for the key performance areas on attack for a No 12. He is fourth for most metres run, joint third for linebreaks, joint fourth for linebreak assists. He also leads the tournament for most successful tackle offloads.
Williams has the capacity to exposes defensive lapses, but the Chiefs’ threat extends beyond the midfielder. Outside of Williams they have five players in the top 20 for linebreaks and five more in linebreaks assists, as well as the tournament’s leading try scorer, Sona Taumalolo. They have also been defensively excellent (none of their players feature in the top 20 for missed tackles).
In Dunedin the Bulls’ kicking game lacked the clinical edge it has when they’ve been at their most dangerous, and while their gainline fight was good, their protection of the ball on the deck wasn’t, which offered the Highlanders numerous opportunities to slow their recycle or turnover possession. It is imperative that these two facets of their play are on point. The Chiefs have displayed a tendency to revisit their cavalier nature when pinned in their territory for extended periods and if the Bulls can exploit this vulnerability they will improve their chance of victory.
That demands an excellent defensive performance to operate in conjunction with a good kicking game, and while the Bulls have progressed in this regard since the fortnight where they conceded a a string of tries against the Brumbies and Rebels, the Highlanders picked at those scabs at the weekend and a better side (which the Chiefs undoubtedly are) would have been more clinical with the chances they created.
Furthermore the Bulls’ ill-discipline continues to undermine their challenge, with scrum penalties being a point of grave concern. Coach Frans Ludeke stressed that they were working hard on remedying this, and with Aaron Cruden proving to be an accomplished goal-kicker, improvements in this department need to be made immediately.
20 Comments
21 May 2012, 11:30 am
Think it will be a close game
Bulls dragons
21 May 2012, 11:46 am
yip.
this will be a season defining game of immense proportion for both teams imo.
21 May 2012, 11:47 am
All the games Bulls lost this year Morne Steyn was not as reliable as we got used from him, with his kicking – must admit this makes me nervous for the Boks!
I think his goalkicks on Friday might just decide who the winner will be!
21 May 2012, 11:54 am
If there is one match that the Bulls should lose, surely it’s the game against the Chiefs. I hope I’m proven wrong, but I just don’t see the Bulls winning here.
21 May 2012, 12:08 pm
If the cheifs can shut down the lineout drive, they should have too much in the backs, even with no Kahui. How the hell did the Bulls score all those points early in the season, their backs look stilted on attack.
Was it pop ball off the ground behind the fringes from the forwards early on?
21 May 2012, 12:10 pm
Aren’t they playing the Highlanders Ryan?
21 May 2012, 12:14 pm
No, just lost to them last week
21 May 2012, 12:28 pm
Chiefs v Bulls close to the Mighty Waikato river being serenaded by that most accomplished of musical instruments,the cow bell. Does not get better than that on a cold Friday night in Hamilton, unless you a fighting man or woman, plenty of pugilistic wannabees in that town.
Bulls will continue with their box kick tactic and try to force the mistake, will have to have a good chase,because if Chiefs can shift ball from Bulls kicks,could be a tactic that backfires.
Basson flying out of the line on Hoeata,gifted Highlanders try.Bulls need to keep a good straight defencive line,if it becomes staggered, Chiefs will find the holes
21 May 2012, 12:43 pm
@Bagel(Bagel)-6: lol funny
21 May 2012, 12:49 pm
@Te Rangatira(Te Rangatira)-8: if bulls keep ball in hand like reds and batter chiefs around the fringes they can hurt the chiefs but probably won’t with 1st choice loosies out injured. chiefs defence slept on genia last week, it could be hougaard’s chance to give them the same dose of medicine genia did.
aaron cruden WASTED plenty of chiefs chances in the first half by elaborating and wanting to ALWAYS be the man! sometimes a simple quick pass is what is necessary to exploit an overlap rather than trying to attack the line and risking getting dominated in the tackle…he botched THREE 3 on 2 overlaps last week.
taumalolo, for all his heroics, why is he always lurking on the wing?
21 May 2012, 13:37 pm
@Transformation(Transformation)-10:
Cruden did butcher overlaps, he needs to look to distribute,not as you put it “be the man”
If Bulls set-up centipede it is obvious what Bulls are going to do, need to move away from these tell tale signs.Hougard playing to coaches instructions, perhaps an extension of himself(coach)on the field,he has to play whats in front of him.Has to read a game, like Genia.
As for Taumalolo, he needs to concentrate on his core duties,trying to sniff out try scoring opportunities on the wing, not the brightest but he can play.
21 May 2012, 15:23 pm
Chiefs to bliksem the Bulls…and Stormers to do likewise next week.
It’s all downhill from here for our friends from Tswane.
21 May 2012, 16:20 pm
After the Bulls last game I am not very confident that they have the ability to beat the Chiefs.
21 May 2012, 18:09 pm
@nama1(nama1)-12:
The one thing both Aussie and NZ teams don’t like is meet the Bulls at Loftus in the Play-off, so whoever referee appointed for the match will practice the ‘Jonker’ on Saturday for the Chiefa
Interesting to note, teams from down under and kiwiland aren’t ovely concerned about playing at Newlands?
21 May 2012, 18:10 pm
Bulls to win this one by a few. 3 or 5 around there.
21 May 2012, 18:15 pm
A lot of chicken counting is see. Rebels showed that it is silly to do so. Hope the bulls win though, I don’t want the stormers to play a team feeling down, to be the best you have to beat the best.
21 May 2012, 18:17 pm
A lot of chicken cou.nting is see. Rebels showed that it is silly to do so. Hope the bulls win though, I don’t want the stormers to play a team feeling down, to be the best you have to beat the best.
21 May 2012, 19:40 pm
Bulls Sloppy Defense is in trouble this weekend especially their midfield
Let’s be honest Sadie,JJ & Venter aren’t the best tacklers, they simply can’t defend their respective channels & not to mention Basson…Cruan,SBW,Masanga,Richard etc will have a feast
21 May 2012, 20:32 pm
@storiejoernal(storiejoernal)-18: Agree with Sadie and JJ, but Sadie did put in an impressive defensive effort against the Chiefs. I do not think you have seen enough of Venter to make the same statement. He was exceptionally good against the Sharks on defense.
Richard Kahui is not playing, but Bulls to lose the last one and then klap the Stormers at Loftus. They are already looking forward to that game.
21 May 2012, 22:47 pm
Bulls will do extremely well to win this one. Problem is they probably won’t. Squeaked a couple of games against lesser opposition and now the chickens are coming home to roost. Another defeat and the Bulls will have to pull out all stops to beat the Stormers at Loftus.
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