Jake White pinpoints Bulls’ biggest area of growth on epic tour

While their month-long European tour wasn’t perfect, the Bulls made history and succeeded where others had failed, leaving coach Jake White pleased.

White admitted they were not yet where they wanted to be, but he said there were clear signs of improvement.

The Bulls became the first South African side to beat Munster at their home ground and only the second to win against Glasgow Warriors in Scotland since the Cheetahs did it in 2019. They were also the first team to beat French side Bayonne at home this season.

The Bulls’ only loss on the tour came from a narrow 34–28 defeat to Edinburgh in Scotland in the Challenge Cup quarter-final. If they had won, they would have become the first South African side to beat Edinburgh at Hive Stadium. As it happened, the Sharks claimed those bragging rights a week later.

Bulls defeat previous champions

White said a key point for him was how the Bulls were able to follow up a victory against Munster, who won the URC two seasons ago, with a win against Glasgow, who are the defending champions.

“To get those sort of accolades on tour, especially with the kind of tour we’ve had – four weeks away from home – is just something that shows resilience,” the Bulls coach said.

“That’s what coaches want, they want players to take a step up. If we’re going to win this competition, we’re going to have to beat big sides away from home. What’s nice is that we’ve proven our away games are as good as our home games at times. That would be the thing that I am most pleased about.”

White said the Bulls’ biggest point of growth was that they had learned “the ability to understand how we can take another step up”. They had to do this in difficult conditions, away from family and supporters, in front of hostile crowds and sometimes on unfamiliar 4G pitches.

“It’s a very talented Bulls team. I’m not just saying it as the coach. There’s, I think, 17 or 18 guys included in the [Springbok] alignment camp, so the challenge for me is to find a little bit extra in terms of cohesion and desire to do well.

“Are we a good team? Yes. Can we win games if we’re all on song? Yes.”

Bulls can climb the table if Glasgow fall to Leinster

The Bulls return to South Africa for a week’s break before hosting Cardiff and Dragons on 10 May and 17 May respectively, in their final United Rugby Championship matches before the playoffs.

The Bulls sit third on the URC table but are in a good position to steal the second spot from Glasgow, who have tricky final matches away to Benetton and Leinster.