Bulls loose forward Marcell Coetzee goes into contact during their Champions Cup match against Bordeaux at Loftus Versfeld. The Bulls were taught a harsh lesson in the true gulf between the United Rugby Championship and the Champions Cup when the reigning champions Bordeaux overwhelmed them 46–33 at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday evening. The Bulls have reached three URC finals, but this was a reminder that the Champions Cup — featuring the best teams in Europe and South Africa — is an altogether steeper mountain.
It was always going to be a fierce contest given the two star-studded line-ups. Bordeaux, the champions, had 16 Test players (14 of them French) in their match-day 23, including the core of the current French Test backline. Fourteen of the 23 also played in last season’s Champions Cup final against Northampton.
In turn, the Bulls fielded 13 Springboks. It was Test-match standard from the first whistle to the last, as the champions chased a precious away win and the Bulls tried to arrest a slump that included last week’s disappointing home defeat to the Lions. The French side began with chilling intent.
Read Full Article on The Mercury
[paywall]
From the opening kick-off they worked the ball slickly upfield before the brilliant fly-half Matthieu Jalibert put fellow France international Damian Penaud in at the corner. Jalibert converted for the perfect start. It took six minutes for the Bulls to finally get hands on the ball in attack, but when they did, they struck superbly.
After building pressure in the Bordeaux 22, Handré Pollard shifted play blind for Sebastian de Klerk to finish in the corner. Parity didn’t last. From the restart, Bordeaux went through the phases until Jalibert created space for Louis Bielle-Biarrey to score.
Once again, the Bulls hit back, this time through flank Reinhardt Ludwig, who profited from slick handling inside the 22, orchestrated once more by Pollard. The first quarter ended 14–14 after a frenetic exchange. The ding-dong battle continued as the rival hookers scored within minutes of each other — Maxime Lamothe for Bordeaux, before Pollard brilliantly released Akker van der Merwe for a reply.
Pollard’s conversion handed the Bulls the lead for the first time at 21–19. Worryingly for the visitors, their set scrum began to creak — a major concern given the Bulls’ powerful “Bomb Squad” of Johann Grobbelaar, Gerhard Steenekamp, Wilco Louw, Ruan Nortje and Elrigh Louw.
[/paywall]
