Another perfect URC weekend as SA teams reign supreme

It was another perfect weekend in the United Rugby Championship (URC) for South African teams which should sound a very ominous warning for the Northern Hemisphere sides in the competition.

The Sharks almost ruined it in the final game of the weekend, but managed to battle back from a 13-point deficit against Dragons in the second half to clinch a breathtaking one point win in the end.

This was after the Bulls cruised past Connacht 28-14 and the Lions trounced Cardiff 31-18 on Friday night, followed by the Stormers battling back for an impressive 34-18 win over Edinburgh on Saturday afternoon.

ALSO READ: Lukhanyo Am voted SA’s best rugby player in 2022

In all SA teams have registered nine wins from 10 matches, with the only loss coming from the Lions who were beaten by the Bulls in the opening round, which means that SA sides have won all nine of their games against foreign opposition so far this season.

That is a big improvement from last season, when all four sides started the competition with a four game away tour and returned to SA with just four wins and a draw from 16 games between them.

Despite that poor start, three SA sides finished the first edition of the URC in the top five places on the log, which should worry the Northern sides as a stronger start this season could indicate an even better showing this time round.

This season only two SA sides have gone on tour so far, but they are four for four after the Lions impressively did the double in Wales, starting with a 28-27 win over Ospreys in Swansea before picking up an even better result in Cardiff.

The Sharks have been unconvincing, but still managed to do the job, starting with a thrilling 42-37 win over Zebre in Italy, before following that up with another tight result in Wales.

Five for five

The Stormers and Bulls have started their seasons in SA, but are five for five after strong starts from last season’s champions and runners up respectively.

The Stormers are a perfect 10 points from two games, after starting with a 38-15 win over Connacht, before a big second half performance was enough to put away a strong Edinburgh side.

The Bulls have also had a good start and are currently second on the log on 14 points just trailing Leinster on points difference, after picking up a 31-15 win over the Lions, 33-31 win over Edinburgh and then a comfortable result over Connacht.

Early indications are certainly pointing to another dominant season from SA teams in the URC, with the Lions even showing that they may be an outside bet for a quarterfinal position come the end of the season.

However, after two perfect weekend’s it will be interesting to see if the SA sides can continue their winning run, especially with the Lions up against Edinburgh in Scotland and the Sharks facing Leinster in Ireland over the coming weekend.