Bulls aim to end Leinster’s unbeaten run; Sharks, Lions chasing wins

If the Bulls are to end their round-robin phase of this season’s United Rugby Championship on a winning note they will have to be switched on for the full 80 minutes against log leaders and unbeaten Leinster at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday, with kick-off at 4pm.

The Irish giants, who secured top spot on the log a few weeks ago, have a weakened team in South Africa, but they showed their depth and strength by scoring 15 unanswered points late in the game against the Lions at Ellis Park last weekend to win 39-36.

And it was that fightback by the men from Dublin, to keep their unbeaten record intact in 2022/23, that has made the Bulls sit up and take notice: nothing will come easy on home turf at Loftus on Saturday.

’80 minutes’

The Bulls, while secure of their place in the playoffs, can potentially move from seventh in the standings to sixth or even fifth, if they beat Leinster and some other results go their way.

“We watched and saw how Leinster came back against the Lions last Saturday,” said Bulls flank Cyle Brink, “so we know they’re a side that don’t go away. We’re expecting another 80-minute performance by them.

“We need to make sure we stay in control of the game and not let them back in by giving away penalties (like the Lions did).”

Brink though was confident the Bulls, who registered a 78-12 win against Zebre last weekend, could hand the Irish travellers a first defeat in the final round of the pool stages.

“If we front up physically and take it to them, I believe we can put them under a lot of pressure,” said the flanker.

Positive results

Folllowing a lean spell when the team suffered a number of consecutive defeats the Bulls are now just one match away from playing in the quarter-finals, something Brink said was down to hard work over the last few weeks.

“The camp is happy. We went through some tough times with those losses, and the boys were down, but we still rocked up every Monday with smiles on our faces.

“We kept training and working hard and we’ve got a few (positive) results in the last two weeks. We’re not taking anything for granted though, we have to keep working hard to keep getting results.”

The other team looking to move up the points table are the Sharks, who’re eighth, but they face a tricky test against Munster (6.15pm), who shocked the Stormers in Cape Town a week ago.

And, in Pretoria, in the first match of the Loftus double-header at 1pm, the Lions will be going all out to send flanker Jaco Kriel into retirement on a high as they look to end their URC campaign with a bang, against lowly and winless Zebre.