DHL Stormers vs Vodacom Bulls

VODACOM BULLS’
ROAD TO THE FINAL
The Vodacom Bulls have emerged from challenging beginnings in the
Vodacom United Rugby Championship to earn a shot at the inaugural title.
J
ake White’s men lost
five of their opening
six fixtures yet find
themselves one win
away from lifting the
coveted trophy.
In common with all of their fellow
South African franchises, the Bulls
found it tough going on their initial
northern hemisphere tour.
Heavy defeats to Leinster and
Connacht were followed by a
much-needed 29-19 victory at
Cardiff, only for them to suffer
another loss at Edinburgh before
losing to the Cell C Sharks upon
their return to South Africa.
In their next fixture, the Vodacom
Bulls battled from 18-0 down to lead
the DHL Stormers 26-18 after an
hour in Pretoria but eventually lost
30-26.
The momentum generated
by home and away wins over
the Emirates Lions was briefly
punctured by a home defeat to the
Cell C Sharks but they have been
close to peerless since.
The Vodacom Bulls were 45-7
victors over Zebre Parma on their
next trip to Europe before swatting
aside each of their first four
northern hemisphere visitors.
Munster were handed a 29-24
defeat at Loftus Versfeld while the
Scarlets (57-12), Dragons (55-20)
and Ulster (34-16) came in for
heavier punishment at the hands of
the resurgent Vodacom Bulls.
White’s side suffered a narrow
19-17 defeat at the DHL Stormers on
April 9 – a result that proved to be
their final loss of the regular season
“
FINE MARGINS
HAVE COME TO
CHARACTERISE
THE VODACOM
BULLS’ PLAy-OFF
CAMPAIGN”
and one they will look to avenge
when the teams meet at the same
venue in Saturday’s final.
A 46-29 win over Benetton helped
the Vodacom Bulls gain a measure
of payback for their Rainbow Cup
final defeat to the same opponents
at the end of last season but their
Vodacom URC play-off path
remained very much unclear
heading into the last two rounds.
They only made sure of a topeight
finish with their 29-17 win
against Glasgow Warriors in Round
17 while a 38-31 victory at the
Ospreys in which Cornal Hendricks
crossed for a hat-trick of tries saw
them sneak into fourth at the death,
edging the Cell C Sharks by a single
point to earn home advantage in the
Final Eight.
Similarly fine margins have come
to characterise the Vodacom Bulls’
play-off campaign.
A dramatic late Chris Smith dropgoal
spared them extra time in
their Final Eight clash with the Cell
C Sharks, who had fought back to
27-27 five minutes from time before
the fly-half’s moment of inspiration.
Smith’s kick booked a ticket to
Dublin to face Leinster, who were
favourites for the title having
topped the regular-season
standings.
However, the Vodacom Bulls
battled to a mightily impressive
27-26 victory at the RDS in the Final
Four – a marked improvement on
the 31-3 defeat they suffered on
their previous trip to the Irish capital
in Round 1.
That progress has been the story
of the Vodacom Bulls’ season.
To this point book-ended by a pair
of contrasting Dublin displays, the
campaign may yet have its crowning
moment for the men from Pretoria.
18.06.2022 - DHL STADIUM, CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA #STOVBUL
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