Bulls outside back Sebastian de Klerk scored two tries in their Champions Cup win over Lyon at Loftus Versfeld. Picture: Lee Warren/Gallo Images
The Bulls marched on to the quarter-finals of the Champions Cup after convincingly defeating French side Lyon 59-19 at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday afternoon.
The win means the Bulls make the last eight of the European Cup for the first time since moving to the Northern Hemisphere competitions. Progressing to the quarter-finals should also help the Bulls faithful grow fond of the Champions Cup as only 7,516 fans went through the Loftus gates.
Those who went to the game were treated to a try fest and a solid all-round performance from the Bulls who bounced back in style following last Friday’s heart-crushing 47-14 loss to Leinster in the United Rugby Championship.
Tries from Sebastian de Klerk (two), Embrose Papier (two), Marcell Coetzee, Ruan Vermaak, Willie le Roux, David Kriel and Chris Smith helped the Bulls to the win.
The Bulls suffered a blow right before the match as their co-captain Ruan Nortje had to pull out from the starting team and was replaced by JF van Heerden with Janko Swanepoel taking his place on the bench.
The start of the game saw the Bulls having to do a lot of tackling in their half as Lyon made entries to their 22m with ease. The Bulls’ low intensity at the start gave Lyon confidence as they imposed themselves physically and made the game about set-pieces.
As the match opened up, the Bulls began to play like the home side as they took control of the proceedings.
Even though they were not at their best in the opening 15 minutes, the hosts made the game’s first converted score.
Winger De Klerk was at the end of a lovely worked try that started with Papier distributing to flyhalf Johan Goosen, who found Willie le Roux before it was spread to De Klerk to finish in the corner.
With their attacking prowess and the X-factor players they have in their backline, the Bulls are always dangerous and a case in point was the second try that came out of nowhere. Springbok Kurt-Lee Arendse picked a loose ball from an overthrown line out and danced his way past the Lyon pack before offloading to Papier who ran to the try line. Goosen converted the extra two points to make the score 14-0.
A third try soon followed after Canan Moodie broke through in the midfield before he offloaded to Papier close to the white line who put it on a silver platter for Coetzee to dot down.
A quick tap by Lyon scrumhalf Martin Page-Relo got the visitors their first converted try. His sharpness caught the Bulls off guard as he flew over the line. That did not deter the Bulls’ confidence as they got their fourth converted try thanks to lock Vermaak, making the score 28-7 at half-time.
The Bulls had the upper hand in the game and were on top in almost every statistical category. The second period was going to be a big test for the Bulls as they had faded away in the second stanza in the two previous games they hosted in the Champions Cup this term.
Game management and accurate defending were what the Bulls needed to show in the second half. They demonstrated superior discontent when Lyon threatened close to the try line from a lineout, contesting well and turning over the ball.
The Bulls had their backs to the wall when Moodie was sent to the sin bin for a dangerous tackle on Page-Relo close to the try line. Moodie was adjudged to have denied the nippy scrumhalf a scoring opportunity so Lyon were given a penalty try.
The Bulls needed to maintain scoreboard pressure since they were a man down. Step up Le Roux who ran a support line for Kriel who passed the ball to him to finish on the wing.
The Bulls then got a standing ovation from their supporters after they ran the ball from their half with the backs and forwards interchanging before Papier picked it and ran to the try line. Moodie’s time on the bench ended with Lyon scoring one try through South African Thaakir Abrahams.
The home side pinned Lyon in their half, suffocating them as they could not find any exit options. This was key for the Bulls as the game had reached the hour mark, a crucial stage of the match. There was no sign of complacency from the Bulls, who chased after Lyon, tackling them and putting pressure on their phases.
The pressure paid off when Kriel intercepted a pass and ran 50 metres to dot down with substitute flyhalf Smith kicking over the conversion to make the score 47-19 in the 70th minute. Smith scored a try of his own before de Klerk scored his brace to give his side a 59-19 win.
Bulls: Tries – Sebastian de Klerk (2), Embrose Papier (2), Marcell Coetzee, Ruan Vermaak, Willie le Roux, David Kriel, Chris Smith; Conversions – Johan Goosen (5), Smith (2)
Lyon: Tries – Martin Page-Relo, Penalty try, Thaakir Abrahams; Conversion – Paddy Jackson
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