VIDEO: Bulls coach opens up on 'weird' Currie Cup semifinal
REACTION: Bulls coach Phiwe Nomlomo praised his players for their efforts in Saturday’s Currie Cup semifinal against the Sharks, but he acknowledged that his team lacked the patience needed to close out the game.
The semifinal ended in a 40-all draw after extra time with the Sharks advancing to next weekend’s Final against the Lions due to a superior try-scoring tally in the match.
The visitors outscored the home side by six tries to four and they were reduced to 12 players (one red card and two yellow cards) late in the game.
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“We slipped a few tackles, especially in that first half,” said Nomlomo.
“It is just one-on-one stuff and we will have a look at it. That was disappointing at times.
“The guys were brilliant out there and they really tried hard.
“[Johan] Goosen broke his nose early on the game and he stayed on for the whole game.
“We had another player who did his shoulder and he stayed for the whole game.
“Cobus [Wiese] played 100 minutes as a forward, so that is massive for us.
“There was a lot to take out of this. It was really good.
“Could we have been better? Of course, we could and a lot more accurate.
“We broke the line a couple of times in the first half, and we possibly could’ve put the game to bed with a bit more accuracy and patience.”
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The Bulls finished the regular season in second spot on the standings and they were unbeaten after their first eight matches.
However, not reaching the Final is a big disappointment for Nomlomo.
“On the whole, we all measure success [differently], but I don’t think this was a successful season for us.
“Did we do well in the season at times? Yes.
“We grew a couple of guys that were young. We saw Katlego [Letebele] come in today [Saturday] and he looked like a world-beater.
“Those are some of the things that we look at and we were able to unearth a couple of guys.
“Even Boeta [Chamberlain]. The confidence to say, ‘Give it [the ball] to me’ right at the backend [for the penalty attempt], is more important for me.
“He is going to grow and he is going to get better and better in terms of how he influences the game.
“This game was weird because we had it in our hands and we kind of let it go. That’s the disappointing part.”
@rugby365com
