Bulls aiming to avoid more heartache in URC final, says Cornel Smit

Bulls utility back Cornel Smit says the group is out to avoid another heartbreaking defeat in a United Rugby Championship final when they take on Glasgow Warriors at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday night.

The Pretoria side will return to the URC grand final stage after knocking out Irish province Leinster in their semifinal, beating them 25-20.

The last time the Bulls contested a URC final was in the competition’s inaugural season in 2022 against the Stormers in Cape Town. However, their first appearance in the final ended on a sour note as they lost 18-13.

The pain they felt in 2022 played a part in the character development of the Bulls team, but they don’t want to experience it again on Saturday.

Using their experience

Smit, who was on the books of the Stormers in 2022, shared how the Bulls dressing room were determined to show she had learned from their last final.

“I was involved in that campaign for the Stormers. It’s strange for me coming here and hearing the other side of the story because my side of the story is the elation of the win,” Smit told the media.

“It’s something we looked back to (the 2022 final), a large part of our squad has felt that pain of losing in a final. As coach Jake (White) says, we paid our school fees. If we lost that game and didn’t learn from it, there wasn’t much learning that took place.

“We are not dwelling on it, it’s not like we are trying to make up for lost time. We’ll take that experience and use it.”

‘Pressure is a privilege’

Smit went on to say the Bulls players were embracing the pressure of playing in a final.

“There’s always pressure in playoff games. You’d be lying if you said there’s no pressure,” Smit said.

 “For the squad, pressure is a privilege; it’s such a privilege to play in front of a fully packed Loftus Stadium.

“Some people might say we are favourites, but we don’t really look at it like that. We are focusing on our week and trying to not let the occasion get to us.”