Player Ratings: South Africa's best

OPINION: The Bulls showed why they are South Africa’s best team after they won the Currie Cup title for a second time this year.

They outplayed the Sharks from start to finish for a 44-10 win in Saturday’s Final at Loftus Versfeld.

Check out the Player Ratings below:

15 David Kriel
The youngster was faultless under the high ball and he exposed the Sharks’ weaknesses out wide when he ran the ball on the counter-attack. He also joined the Bulls’ defensive line superbly when numbers were short on defence out wide.
8/10

14 Cornal Hendricks
He provided great cover at the back when his fullback was out of position and he troubled the Sharks’ defence with the few opportunities he had the ball. He also showed some great control and patience when he scored the game’s final try.
7.5/10

13 Lionel Mapoe
Like his midfield partner, his defending was outstanding and he was a powerful ball-runner on attack. He scored a sensational try in the 23rd minute.
8/10

12 Harold Vorster
He scored a brilliant try in the fourth minute and then produced a great offload for Lionel Mapoe’s try. He was a real handful for the Sharks in the midfield and he was rock solid in the Bulls’ defensive game as well.
8.5/10

11 Madosh Tambwe
The speedster gave the Sharks some problems when he competed for high balls. He also defended his channel well out wide and he put the Sharks under pressure when he ran at them.
7.5/10

10 Chris Smith
He was a real general out there for the Bulls. He hardly put a foot wrong with his tactical play, which included some great kicks. His fantastic flat pass put Harold Vorster away for the first try of the game.
9/10

9 Zak Burger
He controlled things nicely from the base of the ruck. He slowed things down when his team needed it and he increased the speed of play when his team was in the danger zone. He also scored a great try in the 56th minute after a dummy at a ruck.
8.5/10

8 Elrigh Louw
He played out of his skin on attack and defence. The Sharks found it almost impossible to bring him down at times when he had the ball and he was a rock on defence as well. He was probably the Bulls’ best player on the field. He also had a couple of good steals at the breakdown.
9.5/10

7 Arno Botha
He was in the Sharks’ faces on defence he got his team over the advantage line with several big carries.
7.5/10

6 Marcell Coetzee (captain)
He certainly led from the front. He was probably the most aggressive tackler out there and he made himself a nuisance at the breakdowns. He showed his power with ball in hand with a try in the 35th minute.
8/10

5 Ruan Nortje
He was just everywhere on the park. He was one of the best defenders on the field and he was highly physical with ball in hand as well. Like his second-row partner, he was fantastic in the line-outs and made a good steal just before half-time.
8.5/10

4 Janko Swanepoel
One of the stars of a powerful forward pack on Saturday. He was simply outstanding in the line-outs and he made a crucial steal in the 38th minute. Like many of the Bulls’ forwards, he was a hard man to bring down with ball in hand and he scored a try in the 48th minute.
9/10

3 Mornay Smith
He gave away one penalty at scrum time, but he was relatively solid for most of the game in the set-piece. He was another player who had a high work rate on defence.
7/10

2 Joe van Zyl
His line-out throwing was excellent in the game. He was also a key player on defence and he was a disruptive presence when the Sharks tried to get their mauls going.
8/10

1 Gerhard Steenekamp
He tackled like a man possessed in the first half. He had a couple of strong carries with the ball and he was solid in the scrums.
8/10

Replacements:

16 Jan-Hendrik Wessels (On for J van Zyl, 62nd minute)
He had a hiccup with his line-out throwing to start with. It was a solid 18 minutes from the replacement hooker.
7/10

17 Simphiwe Matanzima (On for G Steenekamp, 62nd minute)
He fitted in nicely with the pace of the game when he came on and he put 100 percent in everything he did.
7/10

18 Jacques van Rooyen (On for M Smith, 62nd minute)
He produced some big hits on defence and like his fellow front-row replacements, he hardly put a foot wrong.
7/10

19 Jacques du Plessis (On for J Swanepoel, 64th minute)
Brought some great energy to the Bulls defensive game in the final 15 minutes.
7/10

20 WJ Steenkamp (On for A Botha, 72nd minute)
Not enough time to be rated.

21 Keagan Johannes (On for Z Burger, 72nd minute)
Not enough time to be rated.

22 Ruan Combrinck (On for D Kriel, 79th minute)
Not enough time to be rated

23 Stravino Jacobs (On for M Tambwe, 79th minute)
Not enough time to be rated.

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