OPINION: Bulls will win URC when the players reach peak age

Playing in two finals of a major competition in three seasons is an amazing feat. However, losing two finals in three seasons is agonising.

This has been the case for the Bulls in the United Rugby Championship.

Despite the special occasion of the URC Grand Final at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday night under the lights, the Bulls and their faithful were left devastated as Franco Smith’s Glasgow Warriors team lifted the URC title with a 21-16 win.

Bulls mentor Jake White and captain Ruan Nortje were dejected figures in their respective post-match press conferences. They were both raw and emotional; they were not calculated as usual, and they even questioned their approach to the game.

Not all doom and gloom

Finding positives after such a loss is difficult, but it’s not all doom and gloom for the Pretoria-based side and their fans. Despite their two finals losses, they are a championship franchise and will win the URC.

The core that White started with in 2020 when he took over as director of rugby, along with the talents he has discovered, such as Canan Moodie, Kurt-Lee Arendse, Cameron Hanekom, and Gerhard Steenekamp amongst many others, have committed to the Bulls until 2027.

These two final losses are part of the team’s character development, and in a few years, they will reap the rewards. Once the core squad reaches its peak, the Bulls will be a formidable force.

Winning the URC will get tougher as teams improve each year, and White will look to do the same.

Remarkable URC

The URC has been a hit since South African teams joined, producing great sporting stories. An unpopular take, perhaps, but Munster and the Warriors winning the Grand Finals away from home is remarkable.

If the competition is producing stories like this in its first three seasons, the ceiling of the URC is high.

With that said, dear reader, the franchise season has come to an end, and so has my time with The Citizen.

It has been a pleasure being the resident reporter for the Bulls and the Sharks over the past season. Wishing you all the best going forward.