Latest news with #Bulls
The Star
10 hours ago
- Sport
- The Star
Handré Pollard's return: Can the Bulls finally claim URC glory?
Leighton Koopman | Published 8 hours ago Comment by Leighton Koopman The Bulls' 32-7 defeat in the final of the United Rugby Championship against Leinster was a bitter pill to swallow for supporters, but making it to a third final in four seasons shows that they are not that far off from a title-winning campaign. With a core of experienced Springboks in their midst, the return of Handré Pollard in the flyhalf position, Jan Serfontein coming back as a vastly experienced centre and some exciting young players, the Pretoria outfit will be able to call on more experienced stars than ever before next year. While there is no shame in losing to a better team, and Leinster were streets ahead of the Loftus side, there will be questions around the Bulls if they can't claim silverware next season, especially with director of rugby Jake White looking to make some key adjustments in the off-season. Firstly, squad depth remains a concern for White, and he stated it again in his post-match press conference following the final last Saturday at Croke Park in Dublin. But he was the most successful South African coach when it came to rotating his team. He ensured he had players fit to take up positions when needed. But injuries to key players had a big influence towards the end of their tournament. Cameron Hanekom and Elrigh Louw were out for the final and the latter stages of the competition respectively, and the dynamic duo were vital cogs in a physical, yet mobile loose trio of the Bulls. Hanekom's loss in the final was massive, as was the absence of Kurt-Lee Arendse as well. They need to have like-for-like replacements for their important players. Secondly, the Bulls must tighten up their discipline and defensive structures. Leinster found it too easy at times to circumvent their tacklers, and the space they left at the back allowed their opponents' attack to thrive. Three tries in just 23 minutes effectively sealed the game for the home side, and there was no coming back from that 19-0 deficit. Too many penalties due to ill-discipline and missed tackles cost them, and if they can eliminate some of those unforced errors, it will help them keep their footing in crunch games. With the addition of Pollard and Serfontein, their backline will also see some calmer heads. The Bulls' game management in pressure situations, especially in that final, was poor and cost them. Pollard's ability to control the tempo and territory under pressure will be critical. He kicks consistently well and brings additional leadership on the field. He will be that calming influence they dearly need. With strategic acquisitions to the squad, improved discipline on defence and better game management, the Bulls will be able to finally shed their dreaded URC bridesmaid tag in 2026. The missing puzzle pieces are almost in place for White's side. It's now only for them to seize the opportunity to make it their year when the new season starts in September.
IOL News
11 hours ago
- Sport
- IOL News
Lions bolstered by Chris Smith URC signing as Stormers retain Ben-Jason Dixon, Wandisile Simelane
Former Bulls flyhalf Chris Smith has signed for the Lions. Photo: BackpagePix Image: BackpagePix With the next instalment of the United Rugby Championship starting in a couple of months, the Lions have added some exciting players to their arsenal in a bid to strengthen their squad to challenge for a first playoff berth. The latest addition is former Bulls general Chris Smith, who returns from a two-season stint overseas at French club Oyonnax, crossing the Jukskei from the Pretoria side where he last played before leaving the country. Smith, a consistent kicker, had some strong performances in the blue jersey. So, the Johannesburg side will hope he can take his game to another level as they look for a flyhalf who can spearhead the team to the quarter-finals in the coming season. They have struggled for consistency in the No 10 jersey for the last couple of campaigns, with Kade Wolhuter, Gianni Lombard and Nico Steyn sharing the jersey. But none have put their hand up to claim the position, and the arrival of Smith will add to that competition. He is not the only player joining the men from Ellis Park; they also signed two wingers in Angelo Davids of the Stormers and Eduan Keyter from the Sharks. They must fill the void of Springbok Edwill van der Merwe, who has joined the Sharks. Van der Merwe, who became a Bok at the Lions, has been outstanding, and the duo will have big boots to fill. Davids, a former Blitzbok, will seek more game-time after falling out of favour in Cape Town, while Keyter will look to revive his career after a spell of unfortunate injuries while based at Kings Park. Davids played behind the likes of Seabelo Senatla, Leolin Zas, Suleiman Hartzenberg and Ben Loader, and needed this move away from the Mother City. Both wingers are deadly attackers and have a knack for finding the try-line. So, they should not take too long to adapt to the enterprising rugby that the Lions play. The Lions also announced the signing of Griquas lock Dylan Sjoblom. He will add some needed depth to the side ahead of another URC campaign, where they will look to reach the playoffs for the first time. They boast some of the most exciting players in the country, but have unfortunately not lived up to expectations over the last couple of seasons. Head coach Ivan van Rooyen will hope the strategic acquisitions can boost the side on and off the field as they use the Currie Cup to prepare for their fifth season in the European competition. Van Rooyen is under pressure, and it will likely be a non-negotiable for the side to reach the playoffs if he wants to take them forward. The Stormers, meanwhile, won their arbitration case with loose forward Ben-Jason Dixon, which will see the Springbok committed to the Cape side until 2027 at least. They also confirmed the extension of midfielder Wandisile Simelane's stay in the Cape. Dixon sought arbitration to resolve a particular clause in his contract, which runs until July 2027. 'Ben-Jason is one of the most committed rugby players around, and has been a vital cog in our team for some time. With this now settled, we know that he will continue to give everything on and off the field for us,' Stormers director of rugby John Dobson said in a statement on Friday. Dixon, currently out injured, said that with the matter now resolved, he is looking forward to making an impact on the field once again. 'I'm really grateful that both sides had the chance to bring everything to the table through arbitration and get clarity going forward. 'With this behind us, I'm looking forward to getting back to doing what I love – giving my best for the Stormers.'
Irish Times
12 hours ago
- Sport
- Irish Times
Matt Williams: Lions can't afford to be infected by Irish rugby's sense of entitlement against resurgent Australia
Last weekend proved that 80 minutes of rugby can be a very long time in the professional game. After Leinster's stunning performance at Croke Park , they have gladly passed the chokers' T-shirt to the Bulls, who have now lost three United Rugby Championship finals in four years. At Twickenham, the Premiership final was as enjoyable as getting a tooth pulled, with the highlight being a legendary Michael Cheika sideline blow-up. In Super Rugby, the Brumbies were pumped out of the playoffs by the Chiefs, making it four seasons in a row that the Australian side have departed the Super Rugby competition at the semi-final stage. Leinster would have been glad to get the monkey off their back when it comes to finals. Inside the fortress of the GAA , normal service was finally restored. At long, long last, Leo Cullen's team won the trophy that had evaded them over so many close defeats. READ MORE All of which proves two things. Every team on the planet is only as good as their last game. And winners are grinners while losers can please themselves. In the binary, black-and-white world of knockout rugby, you are either a winner or a loser. Cheika worked wonders in getting Leicester to the English final in his first season. Over the past four years, the Brumbies have consistently performed at an outstanding level despite operating in a dysfunctional Australian rugby environment. In reaching three URC deciders in four years, the Bulls' performance must be described as exceptional. However, the reality is that on their biggest day of the rugby season, the Bulls, the Brumbies and Leicester have all come up short. That does not make them failures . More than any other club on the planet, Leinster understand that sentiment. Have Leinster answered their critics with this URC title win? Listen | 38:05 Across the last five years, Leinster's consistency across both the URC and the Champions Cup has been historic. Despite this, heart-breaking defeats in semi-finals and finals saw many calling for Cullen to be sacked. Sadly, many in the Leinster and wider Irish rugby community possess a deep sense of entitlement. They believed their team deserved to win because they had dominated the competition. This type of thinking denies the basic truth that victory in every match must be earned because, as we have already established, you are only as good as your last match. Leinster head coach Leo Cullen with Jordie Barrett after last Saturday's URC final victory against Bulls. Photograph: Ben Brady/Inpho The wisdom of the leadership that sits above the coach within Leinster could see that with their incredible consistency, season after season, they did not have a coaching problem. They understood that the club had a problem with players coping under the highest pressure imaginable. As the Lions are jetting off to Australia, Andy Farrell will face a similar problem to Cullen. Everyone in the northern hemisphere believes the Lions are entitled to dominate the series against the Wallabies. Wrongly, they remain fixated with the mess that was the Wallabies' 2023 World Cup campaign. This is understandable, as it remains a compelling case in how not to approach a World Cup. It contained a long, horrendous list of errors in selection and coaching appointments and culminated with the great Wallaby openside flanker, leader and talisman, Michael Hooper, not being selected in the World Cup squad. It remains the greatest selection blunder by the Wallabies in the professional era. [ Australia squad thin on playmakers may come back to bite Joe Schmidt Opens in new window ] It was the final act of two decades of mismanagement by Rugby Australia. The list of stupid decisions the Australian rugby community had to deal with across a 20-year period is hard to comprehend. But those in the north need to understand that there have been sweeping changes since. With former players Daniel Herbert as chairman and Phil Waugh as CEO, Australia have competent leaders with a high rugby intellect. For the first time in two decades, Australian rugby has changed for the better. While there remains a long and rocky path ahead, the game in Oz is moving forward. Resilience is a word that gets tossed about far too easily, but across the last 18 months, I have been astounded at the resilience within Australian professional rugby ranks. Joseph Sua'ali'i will be key to Australia's hopes against the Lions. Photograph:for Rugby Australia While it will take a decade for the full effect of the long-term planning to take effect, the elite end of the game is recovering far quicker than I considered possible. It is recovering to the extent that the Wallabies are capable of calling on a very strong 23 players. With Joe Schmidt in charge for the rest of the year and his successor, Les Kiss, already appointed – backed up with the technical excellence of Laurie Fisher – the Wallaby staff possess vast experience of rugby at a very high level. With the expected return of a number of Australian players from France and Japan, who were unavailable in recent seasons, and the stardust that Joseph Sua'ali'i will provide, the Wallabies will have vastly different personnel than the World Cup of two years ago. More importantly, the Lions will face a contest far more ferocious than many in the northern hemisphere are predicting. Any sense of entitlement from the Lions will be punished in a very public manner.
The Citizen
17 hours ago
- Sport
- The Citizen
It's all a load of Blue Bull
On a Marico stoep, moer koffie meets modern rugby betrayal as locals unpack RG Snyman, Blue Bulls heartbreak, and the changing face of boer identity. Bulls loose forward Marco van Staden of the Vodacom Blue Bulls in action during the United Rugby Championship match between Vodacom Bulls and Hollywoodbets Sharks at Loftus Versfeld Stadium on February 15, 2025 in Pretoria, South Africa. (Photo by Anton Geyser/Gallo Images) 'It is,' said Oom Schalk Lourens as he exhaled a cloud of white vape smoke which put the early morning mist of the Groot Marico to shame, 'the best of times. And it is the worst of times.' 'What the dickens are you on about?' burst out Jasper Bledingworth-Jones, the only one of the four sitting on the stoep of the Alleenfontein general store who was wearing long trousers. Real boere, of course, don't wear longs, except to church or court. But then BJ, as he was sometimes crudely referred to, was a soutie, invited into the early morning coffee group in the name of community-building when he moved to the district to set up a polo estate… unsuccessfully as it turned out, but that is another story. Kerneels harrumphed as he drew on his pipe. Not for him vapes – what was Oom Schalk thinking? – or souties. The Boer War hadn't been that long ago, was the view of Kerneels and he was not about to 'get over it'. Oom Schalk continued: 'We won the cricket so we are again the best in the world. But, alla wêreld, what happened to the Blue Bulls?' Windpomp Labuschagne (you wouldn't dare call him Labu-Shayne, like that Aussie) shook his head and thumped his fist on to the upturned barrel which served as the coffee table. ALSO READ: URC report card: We rate South Africa's four franchises in 2024/25 season 'Why did he have to smile and laugh so much?' he asked in a pained, but angry, voice. BJ interrupted: 'You chaps talk in so many riddles it's no wonder you lost the country… what are you on about?' The three others glared at him. Once a colonial master, always a colonial master… Kerneels put him straight: 'That blerrie Err Gee Snyman thought it was such a big joke playing for the Irish against his old team…' Just as enlightenment fell slowly over the soutie's face, Windpom chipped in: 'Sarie's neef tells me that Ernst Roets and Kallie Kriel-hulle won't allow that sort of thing once they get their decentralisation and self-government. 'They will charge an export tariff for any rugby player who wants to go overseas. And it will be double for Bulls players, because something has to be sacred…' ALSO READ: PICTURES: The best from the world of sport over the past weekend Oom Schalk took a sip of the strong moer koffie… at least that was still the same – vaping couldn't quite match the rum-flavoured tobacco he used in his old meerschaum pipe. 'The world,' he said, 'is changing so fast I wonder what we can believe in…' As the others nodded, he went on: 'It used to be easy to define a boer in the old days – even for the Yanks. Dirt under the fingernails and that special tan we get. But today…' Kerneels chipped in: 'Ja, my son-in-law Frikkie has a R20 million tractor with computers and GPS which you need a degree to understand. For goodness' sake… a trekker!' Windpomp added: 'And you should see my wife's cousin's kid. He drives a Ford Ranger Raptor. Bliksem – a bakkie which can do 120 myl per uur with leather seats! A bakkie! That's not right!' A contemplative silence descended. ALSO READ: White: SA teams can only topple sides like Leinster if Springboks come home BJ broke it: 'So the people from the National Dialogue are going to be here next week and I presume they want to hear what we think…' 'I've seen plenty of political foefies in my time,' said Oom Schalk, 'and this is another one. 'But if they bring Siya along, that will be bakgat because I can get his autograph.' Kerneels couldn't hold back: 'But they better not bring that verraaier Snyman. I'll sort him out!' 'Kerneels,' Oom Schalk reminded him, 'RG is a helluva lot bigger than you.' 'Oh, ja…' NOW READ: 'By far the toughest final we've had': Bulls say any other team would have lost
IOL News
19 hours ago
- Sport
- IOL News
Handré Pollard's return: Can the Bulls finally claim URC glory?
BACK IN BLUE Springbok flyhalf Handré Pollard will be back in Pretoria to lead the charge of the Bulls for an elusive URC title. Photo: BackpagePix Image: BackpagePix Comment by Leighton Koopman The Bulls' 32-7 defeat in the final of the United Rugby Championship against Leinster was a bitter pill to swallow for supporters, but making it to a third final in four seasons shows that they are not that far off from a title-winning campaign. With a core of experienced Springboks in their midst, the return of Handré Pollard in the flyhalf position, Jan Serfontein coming back as a vastly experienced centre and some exciting young players, the Pretoria outfit will be able to call on more experienced stars than ever before next year. While there is no shame in losing to a better team, and Leinster were streets ahead of the Loftus side, there will be questions around the Bulls if they can't claim silverware next season, especially with director of rugby Jake White looking to make some key adjustments in the off-season. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ Firstly, squad depth remains a concern for White, and he stated it again in his post-match press conference following the final last Saturday at Croke Park in Dublin. But he was the most successful South African coach when it came to rotating his team. He ensured he had players fit to take up positions when needed. But injuries to key players had a big influence towards the end of their tournament. Cameron Hanekom and Elrigh Louw were out for the final and the latter stages of the competition respectively, and the dynamic duo were vital cogs in a physical, yet mobile loose trio of the Bulls. Hanekom's loss in the final was massive, as was the absence of Kurt-Lee Arendse as well. They need to have like-for-like replacements for their important players. Secondly, the Bulls must tighten up their discipline and defensive structures. Leinster found it too easy at times to circumvent their tacklers, and the space they left at the back allowed their opponents' attack to thrive. Three tries in just 23 minutes effectively sealed the game for the home side, and there was no coming back from that 19-0 deficit. Handré Pollard was hungry for classy rugby all day yesterday, and this cross-field kick was absolutely delicious.#SaffasAbroad — Darren (@SaffasRugby) June 8, 2025 Too many penalties due to ill-discipline and missed tackles cost them, and if they can eliminate some of those unforced errors, it will help them keep their footing in crunch games. With the addition of Pollard and Serfontein, their backline will also see some calmer heads. The Bulls' game management in pressure situations, especially in that final, was poor and cost them. Pollard's ability to control the tempo and territory under pressure will be critical.
