Bulls on sharp upward curve, but still need to tighten up

Given their dominant display in downing the Ospreys in Swansea this past weekend, there is no reason why the Vodacom Bulls won’t go into their Vodacom United Rugby Championship quarterfinal with confidence against the Cell C Sharks.

It is true that the fixture was probably the best both sides could have hoped for after a dramatic weekend that sorted out the eight quartefinalists, but the Bulls will know that while they were so dominant, they will need to tighten up during phases and play for the full 80 minutes.

Over the entire season - and especially on Friday night - the Bulls were so dominant at stages that they could have run away with the game by a larger margin.

And while it was by far the most dominant they had been in an overseas game, there were still moments where they allowed the Ospreys to get back into the game - much like they’ve allowed other teams over the season.

This, in a playoff game could be vital for the Bulls and they know it, and they will need to tighten up a lot more if they want to go all the way to the final.

The one good aspect for them though, is that they are on a sharp upward curve, and when they get it right they look close to unstoppable.

The opposition though will be a lot more brutal than the Ospreys were but the ease that the Bulls took them apart at times shows how much the team has grown over the season.

Consider that, back in January, the Bulls were languishing in 15th position, their rise to fourth was nothing less than meteoric and will have opposition in the playoffs concerned about their ability to win games.

Coach Jake White has seen probably close to it all, and he knows the team needs to be a lot more clinical in playoff games, as the lapses in concentration could be deadly.

“I thought we played really well. I thought there were times where the way we attacked, the shape we attacked, the kind of speed we played with, the ruck speed and precision of understanding where to go and how to get back on our feet was at times as good as any team we’ve played against this year,” said White after the game.

At one stage the Bulls were 38-17 up, but two late tries allowed the Ospreys to claim two points and the Welsh shield. It is that type of lapse at the latter part of the game that can be costly against better opposition.

“We had overlaps and never passed; we had a couple of maul opportunities on the tryline and didn’t convert. Canan gets the ball and knocks it on, didn’t release it and gives a penalty away where they scored afterwards,” the Bulls coach said.

“We’ve done it a few times now, where we’ve probably let teams score at the back-end of the game, for whatever reason – maybe it’s the cohesion, or the fact that they haven’t played much together as that combination…

“There were moments when we had overlaps and froze and didn’t pass, and there were times when we could’ve held on and we offloaded. But that will come. I can’t get upset about that.

“But if you’re going to win this comp, you are going to need those to stick, and need to do those in pressure situations. We will just get better. I am really looking forward to how good we are going to be as we grow as a team.”

The first phase is now done and the Bulls know if they win the quarterfinal they have to travel again and go overseas for the remainder of the competition.

But given the way they played in Swansea, even that isn’t as daunting a prospect as in the past.