The Vodacom Bulls set the tone for a dream Freedom Day long weekend for South African teams in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship but the Glasgow Warriors’ habit of scoring late tries prevented it from being as perfect as it might otherwise have been.
Make no mistake, Jake White’s Bulls succeeded in their primary objective of changing the narrative when it comes to SA teams’ ability to win big games overseas, and the Hollywoodbets Sharks joined them later in the weekend.
Neither the Bulls or the Sharks were playing Mickey Mouse teams in their two match tours, so that they ended their respective trips with 100 per cent records was a huge win for both and also a change of the prior narrative.
The Bulls moved to within one point of second place when they avenged last year’s defeat in the Grand Final with their impressive win over the Warriors at the Scotstoun.
And the Sharks, with only home games against Welsh teams to come, effectively ensured with their excellent big character win over Ulster at the Kingspan Stadium, the first in this competition by a SA team at the Belfast venue, that they will end in the top four.
Which means home ground advantage in the first game of the Finals Series.
Hey Siri: define a 𝐒𝐌𝐀𝐒𝐇 & 𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐁 #VURC tour up north 🥷💨 pic.twitter.com/TdUImbHrNp
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) April 27, 2025
The DHL Stormers joined the party with as emphatic a win as could be expected at home against Benetton, in fact it should have exceeded expectations, to make three local teams finishing in the top five a probability rather than an expectation.
Their five log points meant that they ended round 16 sixth, one point adrift of fifth placed Cardiff.
However, the Welsh team has two games in this country to come, including one against the Stormers.
Given the ruthlessness and the class of their allround performance against a rated Benetton team, the Stormers should be expected to beat both their next game against last-placed Dragons and Cardiff, which would leave them fifth and book them a quarterfinal which will most likely be in Durban against the Sharks.
STORMERS WILL BE DANGEROUS OPPONENTS
While the Sharks made their own statement by clinching yet another close win, the X-factor packed into the Cape team’s attacking game will make them dangerous opponents.
Which might actually be the big win for the Bulls - their win over the champions means they are likely to finish second or third, which means they will avoid their quarterfinal being a potentially treacherous north south derby against opponents who beat them in Pretoria just under two months ago.
What the Bulls really covet though is a second placed finish, which would mean a definite home semifinal should they get that far.
With Glasgow having a game against Leinster in Dublin in their future, a runners up finish looked likely when the Bulls led 26-7 with just four minutes of the game remaining.
Denying Glasgow a losing bonus point would have meant the Bulls would have ended the weekend level on points with Glasgow, and they would then have been heavily favoured as their remaining games are at Loftus where they would be expected to get full points.
The #VURC race to the eight picture has completely changed in a couple of weeks 📈📉 pic.twitter.com/omJT8HUKM3
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) April 27, 2025
Unfortunately for the Bulls, however, Glasgow managed to do what they did to the Sharks when they lost in Durban earlier in the season.
They scored two late tries that weren’t enough to win them the game but were enough to get them an unlikely losing bonus point (in Durban they got two).
That point was enough to keep Glasgow ahead of the Bulls by a solitary point, which means that the Bulls’ fate in their quest for second is now in Leinster’s hands.
The two teams meet in Dublin in the final round of the URC season, and given that Leinster smashed Glasgow 52-0 at that venue in a recent Investec Champions Cup game, Leinster should be strong favourites.
A CURVE BALL
Yet, as there so often is in the URC, there is a curve ball - the game will be played a week before the Champions Cup final, and Leinster are likely to be fully committed to that game.
The potential peril of them fielding a second string team, which is likely, was underlined this weekend when they were surprisingly outplayed by Scarlets, who are suddenly back in the race for a top eight finish and playoff and Champions Cup qualification as a result.
If Leinster have their minds on the European final, assuming they get there of course, it’s just possible that Glasgow can go to Dublin and bank five points.
Which, if Glasgow win their other remaining game against Benetton in Treviso, won’t be easy despite the ease with which the Stormers dominated the Italian team, will keep them ahead of the Bulls.
The Emirates Lions made it a 100 per cent weekend for SA teams with their comfortable win over Connacht, who like Benetton reminded us that most visiting teams struggle to get up twice in successive weeks in this country, but their chances of making the top eight remain slim and are dependent on other results.
OTHER RESULTS WENT WELL FOR SA CHALLENGE
Overall though the results of games not featuring SA teams were great for local sides.
For instance, the Stormers would have welcomed Cardiff knocking back the challenge of 2023 champions Munster as Cardiff is a team they still have to play so having Cardiff just ahead of them and Munster now behind means their destiny is in their hands.
A full house of wins for the SA teams during #KidsRound in the #VURC ✅🇿🇦 pic.twitter.com/XxqQc9izdD
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) April 27, 2025
Their draw with Zebre also hurt the challenge of another top eight contender, Edinburgh, while the Sharks also did the Stormers a favour with their win over Ulster.
The two Irish teams who were strong challengers in all the previous seasons of the URC are now both in grave danger of not making the playoffs this year.
That is an indication of just how competitive the URC has become.
ROUND 16 RESULTS
Zebre 25 Edinburgh 25
Cardiff Rugby 26 Munster 21
Glasgow Warriors 19 Vodacom Bulls 26
Emirates Lions 26 Connacht 7
Ospreys 57 Dragons 24
DHL Stormers 56 Benetton 5
Scarlets 35 Leinster 22
Ulster 19 Hollywoodbets Sharks 22
Log situation with two games to go:
- 1. Leinster 67
- 2. Glasgow Warriors 59
- 3. Vodacom Bulls 58
- 4. Hollywoodbets Sharks 53
- 5. Cardiff 46
- 6. DHL Stormers 45
- 7. Scarlets 43
- 8. Benetton 41
- 9. Munster 41
- 10. Edinburgh 39
- 11. Ospreys 38
- 12. Ulster 38
- 13. Emirates Lions 35
- 14. Connacht 35
- 15. Zebre 29
- 16. Dragons 9