North/South derby reaches climax when Bulls meet Stormers in URC quarters

The North/South derby reaches its climax this season as the Bulls take on the Stormers in the quarterfinals of the United Rugby Championship (URC) at the Cape Town Stadium on Saturday afternoon (kick-off 3:30pm).

Last year the two teams clashed in an epic inaugural final of the competition, with the Stormers emerging as champions after a thrilling 18-13 win, and they will once again be battling it out on the biggest stage, albeit a bit earlier this time round.

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Bulls Director of Rugby Jake White is well aware of the challenge posed by the hosts, who have won all five of their URC matches against the Highveld side, with the former Springbok mentor admitting that they are the full package.

“They have got everything. I think people underestimate how good they are. They have a good set piece, a good scrum, a good lineout and they maul well. They have good x-factor in their backs and Manie (Libbok) has scored lots of points with his boot,” explained White.

“So there is nothing you can earmark and say there is a soft target which we have to go for. We just have to play well tomorrow. That’s what knockout rugby is about. Taking your chances and putting them under pressure.

“They are a solid team. You don’t become URC champions for nothing. They went the whole hog last year and have a phenomenal record at home. They have a phenomenal group of players vying for World Cup spots.

“We just have to focus on what we have to do. We can’t get sucked into all the things that can possibly go in their favour.”

Solid wins

Both teams head into the match off of solid wins in their final URC pool games a few weeks ago, with the Bulls hammering a second string Leinster 62-7 and the Stormers bouncing back from their first home defeat in over a year with a 38-22 win over Benetton.

Interestingly Western Province, without any of their URC stars, comfortably beat a Bulls team featuring a host of their URC stars in the Currie Cup over the past weekend and it remains to be seen if that match will have any bearing on the quarterfinal.