VIDEO: Bulls hold off Waratahs to go top of SA Conference

SUPER RUGBY REPORT: The Bulls returned to winning ways after edging the Waratahs 28-21 at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on Saturday.

Both team’s scored three tries in the match, but a couple of penalty kicks from Handre Pollard proved to be the difference in the end.

The win also lifted the Bulls to the top of the South African Conference.

A powerful scrum helped laid the platform for victory for the Bulls with Lizo Gqoboka being the star of the show. There were also some strong performances from Duane Vermeulen and a few other forwards, who helped bully the Waratahs pack.

There was some enterprising play from both sides in the opening few minutes and it was the Bulls who opened the scoring via a Handre Pollard penalty in the eighth minute.

The Bulls then scored the game’s first try a minute later after fullback Warrick Gelant was put into space by Dylan Sage to run in for the score after some great interplay between backs and forwards. Pollard was successful with the conversion.

However, the home’s side’s ten-point advantage did not last long as the Waratahs broke through their defence in the 12th minute with Nick Phipps scoring his team’s first try, which Bernard Foley converted.

The Waratahs were threatening to take the lead in the game, but instead, a moment of magic from Duane Vermeulen gave the Bulls some breathing space.

After the Waratahs won a line-out near halfway, Phipp’s pass was intercepted by the Bulls’ No.8 who sprinted all the way to the visitors’ tryline to score a remarkable try.

Pollard extended his team’s lead to 11 points in the 26th minute after landing a 57-metre penalty.

There was no more scoring for the rest of the first half and at half-time it was 18-7 in the Bulls’ favour.

The Bulls opened the scoring in the second half with Pollard finding the target once again with a penalty kick to make it 21-7 in the 42nd minute.

The Waratahs needed to be the next to score to stay in the game and they did just that with Kurtley Beale weaving his way through the Bulls’ defence to score his team’s second try in the 51st minute. Foley converted the score and it was a seven-point ball game.

One area of the game where the Bulls were consistently dominant was in the scrums and their dominance won them another penalty in the 57th minute which Pollard could not convert.

The Waratahs then had an opportunity to level things up around the 60-minute mark, but wing Curtis Rona last the ball over the tryline after some enterprising play by his teammates.

However, Rona made amends a few minutes later when he was put into space down the blindside to sprint in for a try after a well-worked move from a scrum inside the Bulls’ half. Foley converted the try to level things up at 21-21 in the 68th minute.

The match was turning into a thriller and it was the Bulls who restored their lead in the 70th minute when replacement Simphiwe Matanzima ran onto a perfectly timed pass in the Waratahs’ 22 to crash over for a try, which Pollard converted.

That converted try was enough to secure a much-needed win for the Bulls.

Man of the match: The Bulls were ruthless at scrum time and Lizo Gqoboka played a big role. He was also outstanding in open play, especially with ball in hand.

The scorers:

For Bulls:
Tries: Gelant, Vermeulen, Matanzima
Cons: Pollard 2
Pens: Pollard 3

For Waratahs:
Tries: Phipps, Beale, Rona
Cons: Foley 3

Teams:

Bulls: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Cornal Hendricks, 13 John-Ben Kotze, 12 Dylan Sage, 11 Rosko Specman, 10 Handré Pollard (captain), 9 Ivan van Zyl, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Hanro Liebenberg, 6 Marco van Staden, 5 Rudolph Snyman, 4 Jannes Kirsten, 3 Trevor Nyakane, 2 Jaco Visagie, 1 Lizo Gqoboka.
Replacements: 16 Johan Grobbelaar, 17 Simphiwe Matanzima, 18 Wiehahn Herbst, 19 Thembelani Bholi, 20 Paul Schoeman, 21 Andre Warner, 22 Manie Libbok, 23 Divan Rossouw.

Waratahs: 15 Kurtley Beale, 14 Cam Clark, 13 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 12 Karmichael Hunt, 11 Curtis Rona, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Nick Phipps, 8 Ned Hanigan, 7 Michael Hooper (captain), 6 Lachlan Swinton, 5 Rob Simmons, 4 Tom Staniforth, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Damien Fitzpatrick, 1 Harry Johnson-Holmes.
Replacements: 16 Andrew Tuala, 17 Tom Robertson, 18 Chris Talakai, 19 Hugh Sinclair, 20 Will Miller, 21 Jake Gordon, 22 Lalakai Foketi, 23 Alex Newsome.

Referee: Jaco Peyper
Assistant referees: Rasta Rasivhenge, Cwengile Jadezweni
TMO: Christie du Preez