While the Vodacom Bulls were enjoying the sun and sand in Toulon, their opponents were high on life as the Dragons secured a semifinal spot in the EPCR Challenge Cup with a tough win over Zebre Parma this past weekend.
That makes two wins in a row for the side that are second from bottom on the URC log, and while it may not be that significant to make the Bulls tremble ahead of Friday night’s game, it certainly means the Bulls can’t take the game lightly.
The Dragons wins over Stade Francais and Zebre over the past two weeks simply underline the fact that Friday’s game, while ultimately a must-win for the Bulls, won’t be as easy as the Bulls may think.
In their recent losses on their South African tour, the Dragons were outgunned by both the Lions and the Stormers, but were more than competitive in both games. And in both games, they made the South African franchises struggle to get on top.
Add to that a Friday night fixture at home and the back to back wins in the Challenge Cup and Friday’s game is a bit more difficult for the Bulls than they would have expected.
Still, with their narrow loss to Glasgow Warriors just behind them, and the week in Toulon have hopefully served as a reset for the Bulls as they head into a two week Welsh adventure.
The games against the Dragons and Scarlets are both crucial for the Bulls run into the playoffs and any slip up could be massively costly.
The Bulls sit currently in eighth spot on 40 points, with Munster and Cardiff one ahead of them and the Lions three ahead of them. But while permutations may not be the thing on their minds right now, winning certainly is.
To many Bulls fans, games away against Dragons and Scarlets are definitely winnable, and almost expectedly so, while their home games against Zebre and Benetton may be trickier, they are at home also.
So a four week head of steam could elevate the Bulls close to the top four, although even they aren’t banking on that.
For now, especially after the season they have had, the Bulls simply want to finish as strongly as possible and should name their strongest available line-up as well.
There is also the question of whether Wilco Louw will return to the side, after being off for the past few weeks on compassionate leave. The death of his father last week after a long illness was handled well by the Bulls and gave the big Springbok enough space in the situation.
But with two crucial games in Wales, the Bulls have yet to say when he will return to the side. It could be against the Italian sides only when the side gets back, or it could be in Wales. All will depend on how much the team feel they need him for these crucial matches.
The games will also serve as the start of goodbyes for captain Ruan Nortje, winger Kurt-Lee Arendse and utility back David Kriel, who all leave the side at the end of the season.
It goes without saying that those four will want to give their all for the side in the remaining games and will be key to the Bulls’ playoff chances.
For now though, the Bulls are in Cardiff with a singular purpose in mind - to travel to the Dragons on Friday and pick up five points.
If they can’t do that, then the calculations matter more, and their destiny won’t be as much in their own hands.