URC: Bulls 21 Leinster 20
A long-distance Bulls penalty in the 84th minute sank Leinster, but head coach Leo Cullen feels the loss provides a good learning curve for his squad.
It was their first defeat of the 2024/25 United Rugby Championship, going down 21-20 in a heart-stopping encounter at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria.
“The two teams were going hard at it, and it certainly wasn’t the prettiest contest,” said Cullen.
“It is not a nice way to lose the game at the end like that; we put in a lot of effort to get to the point where we were in the lead with 83 minutes on the clock, and then that penalty goes over.
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“In the first half, we had to manage quite a few disruptions with HIAs, yet I thought our guys adapted pretty well. The challenge is when you lose two players within the first 10 minutes, and that probably showed a little bit in how the game unfolded later on.
“At the end of that, we probably just weren’t good enough today and we’ll take a lot of good learning from the game. Some of the young guys out there, in particular, will be better for the experience.”
Leinster led 10-6 at the break but would have expected a bigger return given their superiority in the opening 40 minutes.
Leinster were happy to move the ball wide and did so swiftly, while also keeping the Bulls on their toes with clever stab kicks. The hosts looked dangerous on occasion when they opened up, but Leinster’s scramble defence managed to contain them and also pressured them into unforced errors.
Openside flanker Will Connors was a standout performer in this regard, putting in 12 tackles and scooping the Man of the Match spoils despite Leinster’s defeat.
“Marcell [Coetzee, Bulls captain] will know Will well from his days at Ulster, and Will has always been good at chopping the opposition down,” said Cullen.
“You could see that today; he’s an amazing tackler and throws his body into it. He’s brave, a great character in the group and it was fantastic to see the 80 minutes he produced today.”
The Bulls gradually grew in stature after the break, but still Leinster managed to keep them at bay with staunch defence. Eventually, in the 58th minute, the Bulls were awarded a penalty try when Thomas Clarkson collapsed the maul and was yellow-carded.
Leinster started conceding an alarming number of scrum penalties in the second half, and in the 72nd minute the Bulls mauled replacement hooker Johan Grobbelaar over to take a one-point lead.
“We were very close to winning the game, but some penalties let the Bulls back into the contest, and that was a big learning for us.
“There were some discipline issues, and the Bulls’ main strength is that they get you down in the corner and then drive for the line. You just need to get the balance right between the effort part and being disciplined in what you do, especially away from home,” said Cullen.
With two minutes left, Byrne was on target with a penalty to put Leinster two ahead, but when the Bulls forced yet another penalty from the scrum in the 84th minute, centre David Kriel stepped up and secured the three points to snatch the win.
The next stop for Leinster is Durban, where the Sharks are circling.
“It won’t get any easier. The Sharks are a top team, well-coached and another great challenge for us away from home,” said Cullen.
“The focus over the next couple of days will just be to recover from a very physical game against the Bulls and then prepare well for Durban.”
SCORING SEQUENCE – 2 mins: Johannes pen 3-0; 3: Barrett try, Byrne con 3-7; 17: Byrne pen 3-10; Half-time 3-10; 40: Johannes pen 6-10; 43: Osborne try, Byrne con 6-17; 57: Penalty try 13-17; 70: Grobbelaar try 18-17; 77: Byrne pen 18-20; 84: Kriel pen 21-20
BULLS: W Le Roux; S de Klerk, D Kriel, H Vorster, S Jacobs; K Johannes, E Papier; A Tshakweni, A van der Marwe, W Louw; R Vermaak, JF van Heerden; M Coetzee (capt), J Kirsten, C Hanekom.
Replacements: J Wessels for Kirsten (19 mins), J Grobbelaar for Van der Merwe (40), M Van Staden for Hanekom (47), M Smith for Louw (52), Z Burger for Papier (60), D Williams for Johannes (70), N Carr for Kirsten (74).
Yellow card: Tshakweni (14 mins).
Red card: De Klerk (74 mins).
LEINSTER: J O’Brien; T O’Brien, H Cooney, J Barrett, A Osborne; R Byrne, L McGrath (capt); J Boyle, J McKee, R Slimani; RG Snyman, D Mangan; M Deegan, W Connors, J Culhane.
Replacements: A Soroka For Culhane (7 mins), I Soroka for Culhane (8), S Penny for Deegan (10), C Frawley for Byrne (21-30), F Gunne for Osborne (27), S Smyth for McKee, T Clarkson for Slimani, B Deeny for Soroka (all 47).
Yellow card: Clarkson (57 mins).
Referee: B Whitehouse (WRU).
