State of the URC: Bulls, Lions back with a bang
While the Lions and Bulls recorded home wins over the weekend, the Stormers and Sharks weren’t so lucky.
The Vodacom Bulls and Lions kicked off their 2024-25 Vodacom URC campaigns in style, but the winless DHL Stormers and Sharks will be desperate to open their accounts this week.
The four South African franchises experienced mixed fortunes on Saturday as the teams entered the fray following the postponement of their scheduled round 1 derbies because of a clash with the Currie Cup final.
The Lions and the Bulls recorded home wins over Ulster (35-22) and Edinburgh (22-16) respectively, with the free-running Pride particularly impressive in Johannesburg.
But the remaining teams from the Republic both lost on the road, with the Stormers going down 37-24 to the Ospreys at Dunraven Brewery Field, while the Sharks were beaten 36-30 by Connacht in Galway.
Elsewhere, Leinster ran in six tries to trounce Dragons, while Cardiff also secured a second successive bonus-point victory as the Welsh outfit came from behind against the Scarlets.
Defending champions, the Glasgow Warriors bounced back from their last-gasp defeat to Ulster in round 1 by routing Benetton at Scotstoun, with SA-born skipper Kyle Steyn scoring two of the hosts’ six tries.
However, the result of the weekend came out in Italy, where minnows Zebre recorded a famous bonus-point win over Irish giants Munster.
Leinster and Cardiff sit level on maximum points at the top of the table as the only sides to have claimed back-to-back wins in the opening two rounds of the competition. The Lions already occupy a top eight spot, while the Bulls sit two places back in 10th. The Sharks (15th) and Stormers (16th) languish at the foot of the table.
Looking ahead to round 3, the Bulls face Ulster at Loftus Versfeld, seeking to avenge last season’s narrow defeat in Belfast, where they secured a losing bonus point during the league stage. The Lions host Edinburgh, eager to reverse their tight loss in the Scottish capital last term.
Meanwhile, the Sharks travel to Wales to take on the Dragons, confident after a dominant bonus-point win in Durban last year, with Springbok stars Aphelele Fassi and Grant Williams both scoring braces. The Stormers head to Zebre, aiming to replicate their victory from round 7 in 2023-24.
Round 2 results:
Glasgow 42-10 Benetton
Leinster 34-6 Dragons
Lions 35-22 Ulster
Bulls 22-16 Edinburgh
Zebre 42-33 Munster
Scarlets 15-24 Cardiff
Connacht 36-30 Sharks
Ospreys 37-24 Stormers
Round 3 fixtures:
Friday, October 4
Cardiff vs Glasgow (20:35)
Scarlets vs Connacht (20:35)
Saturday, October 5
Lions vs Edinburgh (13:45)
Bulls vs Ulster (16:00)
Dragons vs Sharks (18:15)
Benetton vs Leinster (18:15)
Zebre vs Stormers (20:35)
Munster vs Ospreys (20:35)
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