The Hollywoodbets Sharks pulled off one of the best burglaries in Vodacom United Rugby Championship history, shattering the Vodacom Bulls “Fortress Loftus tag” for an impressive 29-19 victory on Saturday.
The Sharks have reason to celebrate as they survived three yellow cards and countless Bulls attacking chances to counter-punch when it mattered the most and leave the home side punch drunk.
It's a #VURC double for the Hollywoodbets Sharks against the Vodacom Bulls in 2024/25 ✅✅ pic.twitter.com/P2rAQs5zWU
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) February 15, 2025
Against the background of endless tiresome music that only detracted from the game, the Sharks held their nerve after dominating the first half without reward, only to watch the Bulls come back at them strongly.
Still, despite dominating the middle part of the game, the home side forgot how to score, fluffing chances with handling errors, one-off runners that were easily picked off by the Sharks defence and some terrible defending under the high ball.
DOMINANT SCRUM AND MAUL
Much like their defeat at home against Northampton Saints that effectively ended their Investec Champions Cup campaign, the Bulls were all bluster but could not back up an immense scrum and incredible maul with anything else.
Their backline looked impotent and incapable of figuring out how to beat defenders.
For most of the second half, that was the Sharks superpower - fewer chances - but making almost all of them count.
As the business end of the competition approaches, the Bulls know they lost this game the same way they lost in Durban in December - creating many chances, but being way off on their finishing.
As in Durban, the Sharks took the game with a counter attack try that turned the momentum in their favour.
And then they backed it up with two more tries that killed the Bulls' hopes with both coming from elementary Bulls errors.
BULLS RECORD BETTER AWAY FROM HOME
The Bulls' record now is better away than it is at home - mainly because much of their season has been away from home - but it is a worrying thing for the Pretoria side that their invincibility tag at home is long gone.
Last week in Cape Town they allowed the Stormers back in the game and were it not for Clayton Blommetjies missing the last conversion they would have lost.
On Saturday at Loftus they were their own worst enemies again, failing to plant the knockout punch when they had the Sharks on the ropes.
For the coastal side, the double over their nearest rivals in the URC is a gift they couldn’t resist.
It not only closes the gap on the Bulls in third spot but is a gift for Glasgow Warriors in second as well.
With the Sharks missing many of their first-choice Springboks, they have now beaten the Bulls twice with weakened sides, and while their depth is so much greater than most teams in the country, they found another way to win.
DO SHARKS HAVE A MENTAL ADVANTAGE?
Perhaps it is time to ask if they have a mental advantage over the Bulls?
They win pretty regularly at Loftus, did the double this year and won a Currie Cup semifinal after going down to 12 men, and the Bulls failed to take a plethora of chances a few months ago.
This was more than just a counterpunch victory, this was a shifting of momentum that was last seen in the Stormers’ dominance over the Bulls.
Jake White spoke in the week about how they wanted the Sharks to run themselves off their feet.
For the first half it seemed like they were allowing them to do just that.
The Bulls had 43 post-contact metres for the entire half while the Sharks dominated with 78 per cent possession.
Despite the fact that the scoreline was only 10-7 to the visitors - an early try to Jan-Hendrik Wessels was cancelled out by a regulation backline move that saw Ethan Hooker score - a string of dominant mauls late in the first half saw the tide starting to turn.
Slick hands sends Wessels over ✨
— Vodacom United Rugby Championship (URC) (@URCOfficial_RSA) February 15, 2025
Grey Boys High School's Jan-Hendrick Wessels finishes a classy @BlueBullsRugby try 🫡@vodacom #URC | #BULvSHA | #OriginRound #GrassrootsToGreatness pic.twitter.com/nVCduzNNcm
The Bulls pulled ahead in the second half but then failed to make their advantage count.
And while they camped in the Sharks' half for the first 20 minutes, mistake after mistake allowed the Sharks to breathe.
They pulled ahead when Johan Grobbelaar went over from the back of a maul for the first of his two tries.
And while it felt as if they were going to take control of the game, they found a way to shoot themselves in the foot every time.
SHARKS TOOK THEIR CHANCES
You only give the opposition so many chances before they take them. And the Sharks did just that.
An up and under fielded badly by the Bulls bounced into the Sharks' hands, who sent it wide to Jurenzo Julies in space.
The boogeyman did what he is known for, and left Sergeal Petersen clutching at air as he rounded him on the outside, passing perfectly inside for Jordan Hendrikse to score.
Sensational Sharks Rugby 🤯@glenwoodhigh’s Jordan Hendrikse finishes an outrageous @sharksrugby score 🔥@vodacom #URC | #BULvSHA | #OriginRound #GrassrootsToGreatness pic.twitter.com/I5FExmdhgv
— Vodacom United Rugby Championship (URC) (@URCOfficial_RSA) February 15, 2025
That knocked the wind out of the Bulls' sails, and then their mistakes killed their chances for good.
First a dropped ball in a nightmare of miscommunication between Celimpilo Gumede and Boeta Chamberlain allowed Tino Mavesere to pick up and run 65 metres to score untouched.
The irony of the mistake coming from two former Durban players was not lost, but it was about to get worse.
The next ball put skywards saw a comedy of errors as Devon Williams and Petersen clashed in the air, losing the ball, which fell perfectly for Yaw Penxe to score.
Game, set and match and the Bulls only had themselves to blame.
Grobbelaar got a consolation late in the game, but it didn’t matter.
This was the Sharks’ day through and through. And the Bulls will be left wondering what they can do to beat the Durban side?
SCORERS
Vodacom Bulls - tries: Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Johan Grobbelaar (2). Conversions: Willie le Roux, Boeta Chamberlain.
Hollywoodbets Sharks - tries: Ethan Hooker, Jordan Hendrikse, Tino Mavesere, Yaw Penxe. Conversions : Jordan Hendrikse, Siya Masuku (2). Penalty: Hendrikse.