It isn’t uncommon to hear losing coaches talk about learnings after a game, but it was refreshing to hear Vodacom Bulls coach Jake White talk about his team’s reality check in losing to Saracens on Saturday night.
There is no doubt - and White was good enough to admit it - that his team were out-thought, out-played and were naive in the way they handled the conditions in gale force winds against a top team like Saracens.
The problem is that it heaps the pressure on White as they prepare to face English Premiership champions Northampton Saints at Loftus Versfeld this weekend and White will want a response from his team - or they face an early exit from the Champions’ Cup.
The format may work in their favour as only four teams exit after the pool stages, but for a team that is constantly talking about being among the top teams in the Champions Cup, Saturday night was a big reality check.
Part of the concern wasn’t so much the result in the tough conditions, but mostly that a number of the Bulls players looked as if they didn’t want to be on the field. The basic errors, the naivety and watching a normally dominant pack look so impotent in action will be a tough thing for any coach to watch, especially if these are the standards they want to be measured by.
Attitude is a thing that can be addressed, but while the Bulls will want to improve, they have to talk about game management, and one position that starts with is 10. On Saturday night, it was so apparent that Johan Goosen looked like he would rather have been anywhere else but on that field, and in conditions that would suit a kicking flyhalf using the wind to the corners, this wasn’t even a consideration for the Bulls.
OVERAWED OR DISINTERESTED
White knows that Goosen is the best he has at the moment, but also knows while the flyhalf can be as accurate as any kicker in the competition, he has more than a few games where he isn’t just off the boil, but off the park as well.
But he wasn’t alone. There were several players who were either overawed, or simply disinterested in taking on the task of winning against all odds. Bravery is one thing, but heads dropped in the Bulls game early on when they didn’t get early success, and then the uphill battle of playing into the gusting winds seemed like too much for some to fathom.
There were exceptions. Cameron Hanekom tried hard, but was often alone. Akker van der Merwe and Marcell Coetzee - both who have seen their fair share of inclement UK weather - battled against the odds. Sebastian de Klerk was the highlight in an otherwise disappointing backline and to put it mildly, the Bulls were badly beaten - both on the scoreboard and mentally.
So where does this leave the side?
They will get an immediate boost from being at home for the first time in more than two months this weekend - they have been on the road for a long time in the URC and Champions Cup - and that will help a lot. Familiar weather and surface will be a boost for the team.
But long term, there are things that White needs to address, and that will take time. He was asked on Friday before the game if he has the squad to win the Champions’ Cup and his simple answer was no.
It may have sounded defeatist, but to win this tournament you need to be able to beat some of the big clubs three weeks in a row. With South Africa still not able to host a home playoff game, that means this needs to be done away as well.
The Willie le Roux x Sebastian Klerk link-up is crisp 🤌
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So the example White used was beating La Rochelle, Leinster and Toulouse in their backyards in consecutive weeks. Considering this and especially after Saturday’s performance, any reasonable Bulls fan would have to agree.
While the Bulls have made inroads in the URC - winning away games at Ospreys, Connacht and Benetton in this first part of the season - the Champions’ Cup is another beast altogether.
And that beast is test-level action where soft moments are punished harshly.
South African sides - and the Sharks seem to have realised this quicker than most - need to understand the passion and pride that goes with these fixtures. They assume a narrative of their own, they become more tribal than anything the URC offers in its league programme, and their one-off nature makes it a magical thing to be part of.
The Bulls have made much progress in two years, but need to do so much more, and with players that understand and are keen to take on the challenge.
Whether it was fatigue from playing away, the gale force winds they encountered or a Saracens team simply more excited and buoyed by the fixture, it all amounted to the same thing.
The Bulls were soundly beaten. They received a harsh reality check and must regroup and react.
Northampton gave them 50 last year in a one-sided quarterfinal, so there will be more than enough motivation for Saturday’s game at Loftus Versfeld.
Either way, White will hammer the message home that he wants a response.
How the Bulls react will determine where they go in this tournament.