Bulls break derby streak

02/03/2024 20:15

Johan Grobbelaar scored a brace as the Vodacom Bulls beat the DHL Stormers for the first time in the Vodacom URC in a thriller in Pretoria on Saturday night.

Two tries from Grobbelaar and 20 points from the boot of flyhalf Johan Goosen gave the Vodacom Bulls a 40-22 bonus-point victory at a packed Loftus Versfeld.

It was the home side’s first win over their rivals in the tournament and ended a streak of seven successive losses in the North-South derby.

The Vodacom Bulls have now gone level with Glasgow Warriors at the top of the Vodacom URC with 40 points, while the DHL Stormers are in seventh place on 30 points.

Despite an hour’s delay to the kick-off due to a threat of lightning – which also postponed the second half of the earlier derby between the Lions and Sharks in Johannesburg – the Bulls came out firing and dominated the opening 30 minutes after a massive maul saw Grobbelaar score the opening try in the second minute.

The Bulls dominated the collisions and forced the Stormers to give away soft penalties, which Goosen punished, slotting four first-half attempts.

Still, the Stormers showed their fighting spirit and, despite being second-best in most facets, reduced the deficit to just four points at half time, through tries from Ben Loader and Evan Roos.

A reverse to the first half saw the Stormers come out stronger in the second, but their lineout woes prevented them from taking full advantage of their opportunities. Shortly after Warrick Gelant was yellow-carded for a dangerous tackle, Grobbelaar got his brace from another maul.

Canan Moodie then gave the Stormers a mountain to climb by scoring a breakaway try after the visitors struggled to gather a contestable kick, as the Bulls took an 18-point lead.

The Stormers continued to fight and gave themselves hope of a comeback when Andre-Hugo Venter went over from a maul. However, shortly after Roos grounded the ball a hair’s width short of the tryline, Embrose Papier pounced on an error as the Stormers tried to run the ball from their own 22 to seal the victory.

Stormers wave the White flag against Jake's belligerent Bulls

Both teams will have a two-week break to recover before returning to action against northern hemisphere teams. The Bulls will embark on a mini-tour, starting with a trip to Wales to face Dragons, while the Stormers will host Edinburgh in Cape Town on 23 March.

Photo: Gordon Arons/Gallo Images

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