Inactive- dublicate
by Brenden Nel | 12 February 2010 (21:15)
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| Wynand Olivier © Gallo Images |
The Vodacom Bulls made the perfect start to their defence of their Vodacom Super 14 title on Friday night, scoring six tries in a drama-filled extravaganza to down arch-rivals, the Vodacom Cheetahs 51-34 in Bloemfontein.
Blow-by-blow scoring
The game had to be completed in semi-darkness after a power failure in Bloemfontein, but the lights were far from out with a nine-try festival which had just about every bit of drama that a scriptwriter could think of.
If anyone needed a better advertisement for the new interpretation of the laws and an open game, then this is about as close as you can come. Nine tries on the night tells a story of an epic of a match, which also saw two tries “saved” by last-ditch tackles and an old-fashioned penalty try from a powerhouse scrum.
On a balmy evening which cooled a bit from the mid-thirties the temperature had reached late afternoon, the Bulls were red-hot as they showed they can adapt to the new laws. If first impressions are anything to go by, the other contenders will have a tough time wrestling the title from the Pretoria side this year.
Yet the Cheetahs were not disgraced in defeat, and showed they can also play a high-pace match, scoring some magnificent tries of their own as they matched the Bulls for passion throughout the game.
The Bulls -- and Springbok loosehead Gurthrö Steenkamp in particular -- will feel chuffed with the way they demolished the much-vaunted Cheetahs scrum, a factor which certainly titled the game in the visitors’ favour. Cheetahs prop WP Nel left the field early with his reputation in tatters, and things didn’t go better for any of his fellow props on the night.
Afterwards Cheetahs coach Naka Drotske was scathing in his assessment of his side, even though they put up a good fight.
“We didn’t tackle well tonight,” Drotske said afterwards, “Its unacceptable. We also let a few soft tries in and the guys slip the defensive line too easily. We will have to go back and work harder. Our one-on-one defence wasn’t good enough for three of the Bulls tries.”
Bulls captain Victor Matfield was humble in defeat, praising the Cheetahs for their efforts.
“Look, give the Cheetahs credit, they had a go at us tonight and they are a very good side who shouldn’t be written off easily. For us the bonus point away from home with the victory is unbelievable valuable,” Matfield said.
Yet not even the perfect start -- when Lionel Mapoe burst through two defenders to score from the kickoff, would be enough to rattle the defending champions.
The try, which came as the ball was knocked out of Fourie du Preez’s hand from the kickoff for a turnover, gave the home crowd some hope, yet the Bulls were far superior in their finishing and deserved the massive scoreline in the end.
Springbok flyhalf Morné Steyn signalled his purple patch is far from ending with a 24-point performance that was the rock in the Bulls foundation. Five conversions, three penalties and a try show that Steyn is certainly a factor that other teams will have to negate if they are to beat the champions.
Jaco Pretorius hit for the Bulls' first try from pace in the backline, finally crossing the chalk that eluded him for much of last season, and the Bulls spirits were lifted again when Deon Stegmann made an exceptional try-saving tackle to stop a rampant Jonghi Nokwe, who had just stepped three players on his way to the line.
Naas Olivier kept the Cheetahs close with his boot as the inevitable penalties came, but with the Bulls on attack, the eventual break came as Steyn danced his way through the defence and then added a penalty to give the Bulls a 23-14 half-time lead.
The Bulls hit twice early in the second half, as first Wynand Olivier drew three defenders to send winger Gerhard van den Heever sprinting on the sideline to score, and then a deft grubber ahead by Danie Rossouw sent Zane Kirchner ahead to dribble his way to the line.
The match looked just about over, especially with the bonus point already claimed by the Bulls, but the Cheetahs showed heart to hit back with two tries in four minutes of their own.
First Juan Smith crashed over after a quick free kick and then Jonghi Nokwe completed a try that started deep in their own 22 and will go down as one of the tries of the season later this year.
At 37-31 with the crowd on the edge of their seats, Eskom’s entry into the game was a harsh anticlimax, as the entire city went dark just as Pierre Spies looked to be bounding for the line.
Referee Jonathan Kaplan had no option but to stop the match, which the stadium announcer announced was due to a power surge on their main grid and the players were forced to sit around for almost 10 minutes as the reserve generators kicked in.
But when it started again, the Bulls settled the match as they demolished the Cheetahs scrum, claiming the penalty with Fourie du Preez darting for the line. Stopped short, the recycled ball sent Olivier over for the fifth try.
Danwell Demas made an excellent try-saving tackle to stop Van den Heever to mirror Stegmann’s effort earlier, but the Bulls completed the victory with a celebratory penalty try after they demolished the Cheetahs scrum once again on their tryline, leaving Kaplan no choice.
The Bulls leave with five valuable away points and the Cheetahs get none for a sterling effort, but every single person who witnessed the spectacle will rest easy knowing that whatever the laws, South African rugby can certainly still excite, sparkle and entertain.
Scores:
Vodacom Cheetahs - Tries: Lionel Mapoe, Jongi Nokwe, Juanne Smith. Coversions: Naas Olivier (2). Penalties: Olivier (5).
Vodacom Bulls - Tries: Jaco Pretorius, Morne Steyn, Zane Kirchner, Gerhard Van Den Heever, Wynand Olivier, Penalty Try. Conversions: Morne Steyn (5), Jacques-Louis Potgieter. Penalties: Steyn (3).
Read more on the Super 14 page.
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