URC WRAP: Bulls and Stormers fly SA flag but now it gets tough

The Vodacom Bulls and the DHL Stormers occupy the top two spots on the Vodacom United Rugby Championship log, but the real test for both will arrive this weekend when they start their respective overseas tours.

The Bulls allowed Leinster to come back at them a few times before finally putting the game to bed in Pretoria, but their five log points put them at the top of the log heading into the third round. The Stormers should really have picked up a try-scoring bonus point in their ultimately comfortable win over the Ospreys, and that is currently the difference between them and the Bulls.

However, there is context to the fact that the Bulls and Stormers appear to be flying while the other two South African teams, the Hollywoodbets Sharks and the Lions, are already under intense pressure at such an early stage of the season. The Sharks and Lions have played their two games overseas, whereas the Bulls and Stormers will be playing overseas for the first time when they face Scarlets in Llanelli and Ulster in Belfast, respectively. Both opposing teams did not play this weekend due to the stormy conditions that played havoc with several sporting events in the northern hemisphere, so the two local sides will be hoping that their more battle-hardened state will count for something. But both are tough matches and will give us a better idea of their title chances.

Round 2️⃣ = 🔥

Drama. Tries. Late winners. 👏

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BULLS' DEFENCE NEEDS WORK

On the evidence of their stop/start win over Leinster, the Bulls will need to work on eradicating the soft moments from their defensive effort. The Stormers have to get over the loss of stalwart tighthead prop and team leadership figure Neethling Fouche, who has been ruled out for some time with a fracture, while their learning from the Ospreys game should have been the need to start with Paul de Villiers, or Deon Fourie as the alternative No. 6, rather than playing them off the bench.

The table after Round 2️⃣ has shifted dramatically 🤯

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But while there may have been points of concern even in victory for both the two winning teams, any soul-searching on the part of the coaches, the Stormers’ John Dobson and the Bulls’ Johan Ackermann, shouldn’t come close to what the Sharks’ John Plumtree and the Lions’ Ivan van Rooyen will be dealing with this week.

The Sharks didn’t lose, but they should really have been expected to get full points from their visit to the Dragons, who admittedly are a much-improved team on the one that finished last in the 2024/25 season, and with Storm Amy making a sweeping visit to the match venue, there was also that mitigating factor. Those weren’t conditions the Sharks would be used to.

SHARKS DIDN'T CAPITALISE ON FORWARD DOMINANCE

However, given the Sharks’ marked scrum dominance throughout the game, and also the headway they made when the forwards put the ball under the blanket and drove with it, Plumtree should have been highly frustrated at not getting the result. It was far from the Sharks’ full-strength team, and they have several new players bedding in and injury absences to deal with, but they needed the win to ease some of the pressure as they face up to what comes next.

Angelo Davids 🔗 SJ Kotze... Rate this epic finish out of 🔟 👇

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What comes next is a clash with Leinster in Dublin, and apart from Leinster getting their several British and Irish Lions players back for this game, the Stormers and Bulls also did the Sharks no favours by beating them in South Africa over the past two weekends. Leinster are now under pressure to perform, and they will be looking for a big game against the Durbanites.

The Sharks could have some of their Springboks back too, but just how many of the players who were on national duty in London this past week that Plumtree will draw on, we will only know during the coming week. The Sharks coach did say before the tour that the cavalry he brings in will depend on workload and other factors.

The Lions don’t have returning stars coming back to them for their game against Benetton in Treviso, except perhaps scrumhalf Morne van den Bergh, but will need a considerable improvement on what they delivered in their last-gasp defeat to Zebre in Parma on Sunday. Given that they should have been battle-hardened by the Currie Cup, the Lions have been disappointing.

GLASGOW ALSO DROPPED A GAME

Not that the two South African sides are the only ones under pressure early doors. Apart from champions Leinster, the previous champions, Glasgow Warriors, also dropped a game this weekend, with Benetton doing to them in the northern part of Italy something similar to what Zebre did in the southern part of Italy.

The big game between Edinburgh and Ulster did not take place because of Amy, and with this being too early in the season for players to need freshening up and resting, it will be interesting to see how that impacts them as they face Munster and the Bulls, respectively, in their next games.

Weekend Vodacom URC results

DHL Stormers 26 Ospreys 10

Dragons 17 Hollywoodbets Sharks 1

Connacht v Scarlets (Postponed/TBD)

Benetton 16 Glasgow Warriors 14

Vodacom Bulls 39 Leinster 31

Munster 23 Cardiff Rugby 20

Zebre 22 Emirates Lions 20

Edinburgh v Ulster (Postponed/TBD)

Upcoming fixtures:

Munster v Edinburgh (Limerick, Friday 8.45pm)

Scarlets v DHL Stormers (Llanelli, Friday 8.45pm)