General Steyn gets Bulls' Currie Cup back on track
MATCH REPORT: The Bulls have given their Currie Cup campaign an injection with their 30-19 victory over the Lions at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.
Moving into the fourth position on the log, it was a slow start to the last game of a bumper day of rugby in Pretoria.
It was a tale of two halves which saw the home-team narrowly grinding out the win, but it was not the greatest spectacle of rugby on display.
The home-side kicked into gear after around the ten minute mark of the first half, while the visitors’ performance was marred by a lot of errors with a lot of shoddy handling on display.
The first ‘try’ came in the sixth minute by the Lions’ strong wing Prince Nkabinde, but after the successful conversion by Tiaan Swanepoel, the call went up to the TMO which showed that Nkabinde had his foot in touch and the try was disallowed.
The Lions never capitalised on the 84% possession they had in the first quarter of the game as their handling and decision making let them down.
From there it was all the Bulls, or shall we say Morne Steyn, who dictated the game like the general he is and he finally got his team on the scoreboard with a successful penalty kick. Five minutes later Jan-Hendrik Wessels stormed over from a maul for the first try of the game.
Six minutes later it was the turn of Chris Smit after a perfectly weighted high kick by Steyn put the Bulls in an attacking position and the centre managed to finish it off in the corner.
The Bulls deservedly led by 17-0 having made the Lions defend phase after phase and Steyn finally ended the first half with a drop goal.
The Bulls clearly defended their lead going into the second half, which resulted in a lot of indiscretions. Referee Paul Mente repeatedly warned them and finally had to show Wessels and captain Reinhardt Ludwig the yellow which saw them side by side in the sin bin.
In this time the Lions could have utilised the numerical advantage better but they still struggled to put phases together. The Bulls’ defence was tested to the fullest but the wall finally crumbled.
It was replacement hooker Michael van Vuuren who showed his mettle by forcing his way over the try-line twice within four minutes.
The Lions never gave up, opting to fight to the very end, and they were rewarded with another try in the dying seconds by Rynhardt Jonker, but not before the Bulls’ Ludwig also scored with five minutes left on the clock.
Scorers
For the Bulls:
Tries: Wessels, Smit, Ludwig
Cons: Steyn 3
Pens: Steyn 2
DG: Steyn 1
For the Lions:
Tries: Van Vuuren 2, Jonker
Cons: Swanepoel 2
Yellow cards: Jan-Hendrik Wessels (Bulls, 51’ for high tackle), Reinhardt Ludwig (Bulls, 62’ for off-side)
Teams:
Bulls: 15. Juan Mostert, 14. Sibongile Novuka, 13. Lionel Mapoe, 12. Chris Barend Smit, 1. Wandisile Simelane, 10. Morne Steyn, 9. Zak Burger, 8. WJ Steenkamp, 7. Reinhardt Ludwig, 6. Cameron Hanekom, 5. Charlie Ewels, 4. Jacques Du Plessis, 3. Sebastian Lombard, 2. Jan-Hendrik Wessels,1. Simphiwe Matanzima,
Replacements: 16 Jacques van Rooyen, 17 Tiaan Lange, 18 Robert Hunt, 19 Merwe Olivier, 20 Mihlali Mosi, 21 Bernard van der Linde, 22 Cornal Hendricks, 23 Kabelo Mokoena
Lions: 15 Vaughen Isaacs, 14 Prince Nkabine, 13 Stean Pienaar, 12 Tyler Bocks, 11 Boldwin Hansen, 10 Tiaan Swanepoel, 9 Nico Steyn, 8 Travis Gordon, 7 Jarod Cairns, 6 Renzo du Plessis, 5 Darrien-Lane Landsberg, 4 Raynard Roets, 3 Ruan Smith, 2 Jaco Visagie (captain), 1 Sti Sithole.
Replacements: 16 Michael van Vuuren, 17 Kayden Kiesit, 18 Kabous Bezuidenhout, 19 PJ Steenkamp, 20 Emmanuel Tshituka, 21 Cal Smid, 22 Andre Warner, 23 Rynhardt Jonker
Referee: Paul Mente
Assistant Referees: Local
TMO: Christie du Preez
