The Vodacom Bulls turned on the power and pace in the final 20 minutes of the game to record an emphatic 44-22 win over Benetton Treviso in their Vodacom United Rugby Championship match on Friday night.
The Bulls scored three times in the last 20 minutes to pull away from their Italian hosts, showing their class as they outscored the hosts five tries to one and took all the points on offer.
But this wasn’t just another win for the Bulls in the URC, this was a revelation. This was the Bulls burying the demon of their Rainbow Cup loss two years ago as they condemned the hosts to their first defeat of the season.
Make no mistake, this was a psychological win for the Bulls that went far beyond the five points on offer.
It was a redeeming feature to end a tour on a high note after two bad losses, and overcome a demon that had haunted the Bulls since their entry into Europe.
It was built on the back of a tough-as-nails performance - sometimes these aren’t pretty, but they are effective, as the Bulls slow poison took its time before coming into effect in the second half.
This was never going to be pretty. But it was to be effective, and that is what counts.
There were some massive performances. From Bismarck du Plessis and Marcell Coetzee dominating the breakdowns, to Zak Burger’s crisp service and a cameo performance by Morne Steyn that reminded us all why he is the banker, the Bulls powered home in the second half to ease to the win that looked so far away so much earlier in the game.
Because, let’s be honest, this was never going to be a classic. Benetton sucked the Bulls into their game plan early on and they were looking to keep the score down. They were looking to be a team that shut down the opposition and dragged them to the gutters.
As they have done to so many other teams, that dragging down eventually gets to a team. You doubt yourself as the errors mount.
But on the night the Bulls never doubted. They continued on. They soldiered on and made their tackles. While Benetton dominated the early play, the Bulls never gave up. And in the end it paid off.
Benetton started off well, they played the percentages and they got themselves up to a 9-3 lead. At halftime they led 12-3 and their plan seemed to be working.
But the Bulls had other ideas. An early penalty by Chris Smith in the second half narrowed the lead and the Bulls hit hard shortly afterwards as Marco van Staden punched through the middle and Embrose Papier spotted and took a beautiful gap to put Ruan Nortje away under the posts.
The Bulls had taken the lead and they weren’t going to relinquish it.
Benetton grabbed a penalty back to retake the lead before Elrigh Louw crashed over from close range to give the Bulls the advantage again.
Benetton then got their first try when flanker Manuel Zuliani found himself on the end of a beautiful pop pass to score Benetton’s only try.
That took the home side into a one point lead, but Smith’s boot put the Bulls ahead again and they never looked back as they dominated the last quarter to run out clear winners.
The crucial moment came with the Bulls on attack as a lineout ball was spilt and Jan-Hendrik Wessels poached, twisted and found his way over the line.
The try was awarded after a lengthy debate between the TMO and referee Frank Murphy, but when it was, it put the Bulls more than a score ahead.
And in the chaos as Benetton tried to chase the game the Bulls pounced, with Marcell Coetzee and then Stravino Jacobs pouncing to take the game away from Benetton. And the capping moment being Morne Steyn’s banker-like accuracy in slotting the conversions.
This was a bigger win than just the game for the Bulls. This was burying a demon that haunted them since the Rainbow Cup loss.
And it was a massive statement of their ambitions.
Five match points were what they got. It was worth their weight in gold.
SCORERS
Benetton Treviso 22 - try: Manuel Zuliani. Converison: Tomas Albornoz. Penalties: Albornoz (5).
Vodacom Bulls 44 - tries: Ruan Nortje, Elrigh Louw, Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Marcell Coetzee, Stravino Jacobs. Conversions: Chris Smith (2), Morne Steyn (3). Penalties: Smith (3).