Bulls rearing for URC playoff charge

24/04/2024 13:46

Zak Burger says the Vodacom Bulls have recovered from the disappointment of a home loss to Munster and want to continue putting pressure on the Vodacom URC’s top three when they face Ospreys on Saturday.

The Vodacom Bulls lost ground on the URC’s leaders after suffering a defeat to Munster at Loftus Versfeld last Saturday.

Going into half-time trailing after conceding a try just before the break to RG Snyman, the Bulls flew out of the blocks in the second half, but lost control of the game after flyhalf Johan Goosen was sent off.

“It was a disappointing result,” Burger said. “We had a hard look at ourselves and saw what we need to work on and where we made mistakes. Munster is a quality outfit. If you look at last year’s playoffs, they beat Glasgow, Leinster and the Stormers away. So they are a good travelling team.

“We also made it hard for ourselves at the end of that game. We tried to force a lot of passes and made a lot of unforced errors. We tried to offload when it wasn’t on and we didn’t dominate the contact and conceded lots of soft penalties. They have world class players and capitalised.”

Up next for the Bulls is a clash with Welsh side Ospreys, who claimed their own upset by stunning the DHL Stormers in Cape Town.

“We knew that Ospreys are a dangerous team, even though nobody expected that result,” Burger said. “It just shows what a good mindspace they are in. They are in the race for the top eight position, so every game is a must-win to climb the log and get home playoffs.

“Ospreys beat the Lions this season in the Challenge Cup at Ellis Park. So they are a good team. They have a very good kicking game and their defence is brilliant. They create opportunities through their defence and kicking game. Hopefully we can neutralise that and make it easier on Saturday.”

With the race for a home playoff and even the top eight becoming more and more congested, Burger knows that the Bulls cannot afford any more missteps.

“This is a must-win. We are on 46 points, with Benetton just behind us on 42. We want to get as many points as possible from these last four games and put the pressure on Munster, Glasgow and Leinster to drop points somewhere and catch them up.

“We made it tougher by losing at home this past weekend. In the URC, usually the home teams win. Away wins are rare, so hopefully we can finish on a high and go into the playoffs with some momentum.”

Photo: Lee Warren/Gallo Images

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