Stormers thump Bulls at Loftus to move up to second
MATCH REPORT: The Stormers returned to winning ways in the United Rugby Championship after they recorded a 32-19 bonus-point victory against the Bulls in their rescheduled Round Eight clash at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.
John Dobson’s side entered the match under pressure after three derby defeats (two against the Sharks and one against the Lions), which saw them move down the standings.
However, they are now back up to second after the four-try win in Pretoria.
The Stormers pummelled the Bulls in the set-pieces, especially in the second half, and it laid the platform for the victory.
The Bulls also suffered a blow before kick-off when scrumhalf Embrose Papier was ruled out, with Paul de Wet taking over the No.9 jersey.
The home side thought they opened the scoring in the third minute when the ball was sent wide to Kurt-Lee Arendse, who ran in for a five-pointer. However, the TMO spotted a knock-on by De Wet in the build-up.
It was the same story at the other end when the visitors were nearly over in the 12th minute when Suleiman Hartzenberg raced towards the corner to dot the ball down. However, he had a foot in touch before he placed the ball.
The Capetonians were reduced to 14 men in the 15th minute after Adre Smith was yellow-carded for tackling Handre Pollard in the air after a clearance kick.
It got worse for Dobson’s side a few minutes later when the Bulls were awarded a penalty try after Ben-Jason Dixon collapsed a driving maul just before the tryline. The Springbok also received a yellow card for his infringement.
Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu had the chance to put his side on the board in the 25th minute, but he pulled his penalty kick wide.
The visitors finally opened their account when Damian Willemse ran a great line to pounce on a pass from Stefan Ungerer to score a try. Feinberg-Mngomezulu levelled the scores with his conversion.
Momentum was firmly on the Stormers’ side after that, and Feinberg-Mngomezulu gave his side the lead with a penalty goal just before the break.
There was sustained pressure from the Stormers after the break, and the Springbok playmaker made it a 13-7 ball game with another three-pointer in the 51st minute.
He had an opportunity to extend the lead in the 53rd minute with another penalty goal attempt, but he couldn’t find the direction.
However, the Stormers fans were celebrating in the 57th minute when Paul de Villiers went over for his side’s second try from a powerful driving maul.
It was all falling apart for the Bulls, and there was some more salt in their wounds when Cobus Wiese was given a yellow card for shoving his hand in an opponent’s face.
Not long after that, the Stormers were awarded a penalty try after Marco van Staden collapsed a mall near the Bulls’ tryline.
The Bulls were also reduced to 13 men after Van Staden was shown a yellow for that infringement.
Just when you thought the game was well and truly out of the Bulls’ reach, they managed to hit back with a try by Zak Burger after some clever play by Canan Moodie.
However, the home side’s hopes were crushed in the 70th minute after Hacjivah Dayimani chased the ball after a Damian Willemse kick before dotting the ball down for the all-important bonus-point try.
The Bulls had the final say in the game with a try from Arendse, but it was too little, too late.
Man of the match: We think that the Stormers forwards should share the award for destroying the Bulls in the set-pieces on Saturday.
The scorers:
For Bulls:
Tries: Penalty Try, Moodie, Arendse
Con: Pollard
For Stormers:
Tries: Willemse, De Villiers, Penalty Try, Dayimani
Cons: Feinberg-Mngomezulu 2
Pens: Feinberg-Mngomezulu 2
Yellow cards: Adré Smith (Stormers, 15′ – foul play, tackling an opponent in the air); Ben-Jason Dixon (Stormers, 19′ – cynical play, collapsing the maul); Cobus Wiese (Bulls, 64′ – foul play, striking an opponent); Marco van Staden (Bulls, 66′ – cynical play, collapsing the maul)
Teams:
Bulls: 15 David Kriel, 14 Sebastian de Klerk, 13 Canan Moodie, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Paul de Wet, 8 Jeandre Rudolph, 7 Elrigh Louw, 6 Marcell Coetzee (captain), 5 Ruan Nortje, 4 Ruan Vermaak, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Johan Grobbelaar, 1 Gerhard Steenekamp.
Replacements: 16 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 17 Alu Tshakweni, 18 Mornay Smith, 19 Cobus Wiese, 20 Nizaam Carr, 21 Marco van Staden, 22 Zak Burger, 23 Willie le Roux.
Stormers: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Suleiman Hartzenberg, 13 Ruhan Nel (captain), 12 Damian Willemse, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Stefan Ungerer, 8 Marcel Theunissen, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Deon Fourie, 5 JD Schickerling, 4 Adré Smith, 3 Neethling Fouché, 2 André-Hugo Venter, 1 Ntuthuko Mchunu.
Replacements: 16 JJ Kotzé, 17 Vernon Matongo, 18 Sazi Sandi, 19 Paul de Villiers, 20 Hacjivah Dayimani, 21 Imad Khan, 22 Jonathan Roche, 23 Wandisile Simelane.
Referee: Marius van der Westhuizen (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Morne Ferreira (South Africa), Griffin Colby (South Africa)
TMO: Marius Jonker (South Africa)
