Bulls flyhalf Chris Smith, who learned his rugby down the road from Newlands, helped sink Western Province with an all-round quality performance on Saturday. Picture: Getty Images
Bulls flyhalf Chris Smith said on Monday that the team’s culture and care for each other was the source of their incredible determination that took them to a remarkable 22-20 victory over Western Province in their Currie Cup clash at Newlands at the weekend, despite the visitors having to play with 14 men for the last 35 minutes.
Smith was a key figure in the Bulls’ first triumph in Cape Town since 2009, not only kicking an angled last-minute conversion to win the match, but also shining in the final quarter with a couple of telling breaks and generally taking control of the contest.’
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“The hunger was obviously there in the team to fight to the end and to pull through for the win showed our desperation, our hunger and that we play for each other,” Smith said.
“That’s thanks to the culture of the team, we really care for each other. It was an incredible feeling because the Bulls have not beaten Western Province at Newlands in 11 years and I was 15 years old when Morne Steyn made the kick to win that one, at school just down the road at SACS.
“And for me to now make the winning kick was a very special moment in my career, an awesome feeling and I was very chuffed. I missed a similar one against the Free State Cheetahs, having been put on after Morne had kicked well from the start. Those are the big moments that you want to step up, but I learnt from it and moved forward, and I’m stoked it didn’t happen twice,” Smith said.
Smith admitted that it helped not having the usual passionate Newlands crowd cheering on Western Province … and trying to distract the opposition kicker at such a key moment.
“A big crowd can definitely fiddle with your mindset a bit, so it was nice to be able to kick in peace. But we’re a few games in now without having crowds so it has become normal. But a lot of players do get energy from the crowd, they find it highly motivating. The kick was a bit of a blur for me, but I tried to just stick to my process and I knew I had put in the prep.
“I’ve been very lucky to have a mentor like Morne Steyn, I learn from him daily. He’s been playing incredible rugby and is probably the form flyhalf in the country right now. So I’m just being a sponge because he’s a Springbok legend and an even bigger legend off the field, I just follow and learn from him. Having good players around me definitely makes life easier,” Smith said.
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