The Vodacom Bulls produced a powerful second-half performance to get the job done and take all five points on offer, as they swept aside the Dragons 47-17 in their Vodacom United Rugby Championship match at Rodney Parade on Friday night.
The combination of reverting to their forward pack and the inspiration of a bench that was both physical and dominant took them from a close game to running away with the scoreline late in the game.
The win temporarily moves them into fifth place, although that may change by the end of the weekend. Either way, the mission was accomplished and they will move on to face Scarlets next weekend with a lot of confidence as the business end of the tournament comes into play.
Chief among the destroyers was captain Marcell Coetzee, who put in an inspired performance leading from the front, and was rightly named man of the match. Coetzee is never one to shy away from the action, but on a mild night in Wales, he was very much front and centre, taking the ball up with purpose and putting in some massive hits as well.
Coetzee made no less than 14 carries - the most in the game - and followed it up with 11 tackles - the second most by a Bulls player after Ruan Nortje and was a terror for the Dragons throughout.
But the win wasn’t about one man either, although the Bulls did make some heavy weather of it in the first half, and only when they settled on their intent to keep the ball up front did the gates open for them in the second.
The Dragons must be applauded for their defence in the first half. The Bulls scrum was dominant throughout, and the physical mismatch was clear to see. But the home side held out for the first half and were competitive throughout, even though it became clear they were outgunned in the second.
SETPIECE AND PHYSICALITY
For the first half, while the Bulls scored tries through Embrose Papier and Johan Grobbelaar, they squandered a few chances and kept the Dragons in the game with their mistakes.
In the second half, however, the mindset was very much a forwards game, and the physicality showed as they made inroads by punching through the middle and letting their setpiece do the work.
Papier had, in any case, scored off the back of a dominant five-metre scrum, picking up the ball and diving over without a defender to trouble him.
Grobbelaar’s try was also regulation, folding off the back of a lineout maul, but goodness, it was effective.
However, in that half the Dragons kept pace with the Bulls, and thanks to a superb break by Tongan midfielder Fine Inisi, who scythed through the defensive wall between Harold Vorster and Stedman Gans to score, they were still in touch at the break.
Whatever happened, however, at halftime, favoured the Bulls. The difference in the outlook was remarkable as the team returned focused and intent on using their forwards more, and got almost immediate results.
A penalty was sent to the corner, and the lineout maul was initially stopped, but the follow-up forays were so intense that it was impossible to stop Coetzee from going over at close range.
IMMEDIATE IMPACT
The Dragons looked to have struck back as winger Jared Rosser picked up a loose ball and smoked the Bulls defence for what looked to be an exceptional individual try, only for the television replays to show a knock on in the lead-up.
The Bulls didn’t need more of an invitation, and a few minutes later, Marco van Staden appeared as part of a front row swap and immediately made an impact, scoring twice in succession as the Bulls took the game away from the Dragons.
Both tries were similar, forward-based and Van Staden’s low-driving frame going over from close range. Not spectacular for highlight reels, but very effective indeed.
It was left to the backline to score two tries in the final three minutes as Devon Williams latched onto a Willie le Roux chip to pick up and score, before Sergeal Petersen showed his magic by busting a tackle on his way to the tryline after being put in space.
Seven tries to one away from home tells a good story for the Bulls, especially at the stage of the season where winning is everything.
The bigger tests will come, but in this mood, and with a forward pack led by the captain in a determined mood, this Bulls team will be difficult to stop.
SCORERS
Vodacom Bulls - tries: Embrose Papier, Johan Grobbelaar, Marcell Coetzee, Marco van Staden (2), Devon Williams, Sergeal Petersen. Conversions: Handre Pollard (3), David Kriel (3).
Dragons - try: Fine Inisi. Conversion: Cai Evans.