The Blue Bulls guaranteed themselves a place in the Currie Cup semifinal through a hard-fought and bruising battle that yielded a 41-31 victory over reigning champions, the Free State Cheetahs, at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.
The Cheetahs had come to Loftus already guaranteed of a place in the last four, but also wanted to repeat their miraculous feat of last year when they won the championship at the death against the Bulls at the very same Loftus.
As much as the Cheetahs had good memories from last season, it was the Bulls that had a score to settle, and they did. The Bulls ran rampant all afternoon but they almost conceded the unforgivable sin of not consistently keeping their defensive lines.
So erratic were the Bulls as the match wore on that the Cheetahs were able to slip in enough tries to give them a bonus point and ensure a home semifinal.
Matters could have easily been different in the second half after the Bulls led comfortably 26-12 at the half-time interval.
Three tries from the visitors against the run of play could easily have swayed the game the Cheetahs’ way as the Bulls failed to quash the few, but almost fatal, counterattacks by the Cheetahs backline.
The Bulls managed to hold on at the end by 10 points — a victory that could have been a done deal long before the final whistle.
The Bulls had done very well to dictate matters from the onset through a third-minute try from Dries Scholtz.
The Cheetahs struck seven minutes later when Ryno van der Merwe emerged from a mountain of bodies from a Cheetahs maul, but in the 13th minute the Bulls assumed the lead from a Danie Rossouw try.
The Cheetahs once again made full use of the sluggish Bulls defence and in the 19th minute Phillip Burger latched onto a Johan Roets up-and-under and ran all of 65m to swallow dive over the line to haul the Cheetahs within two points of their hosts at 14-12.
As easy as it was for the Cheetahs to carve through the Bulls defence, so it was for the Bulls to put together a few moves and punish the laid-back Free Staters.
Scholtz was at it again in the 23rd minute when he brushed off a Willem de Waal tackle to canter in for his second try of the day.
After sustained pressure the Bulls were able to go into the half-time interval with a commanding lead as Marius Delport scored in the 39th minute to give the Bulls the 26-12 lead.
But it was the young Burger who threw s spanner in the works as he sliced the Bulls backline with ease for two tries in the 46th and 62nd minutes to grab his hat-trick.
The Bulls were able to stay ahead through an opportunistic interception try from Akona Ndungane in the 42nd minute and a bullocking try from Pierre Spies in the 48th minute.
The Cheetahs may not have been able to dethrone the Bulls at Fortress Loftus, but that is irrelevant in the greater scheme of things.
The bonus point was achieved and the Cheetahs have guaranteed themselves a home semifinal.
For the Bulls, the win meant they do not need to travel to Newlands — instead, old foes Western Province will have to come up to Loftus next Saturday.
Scorers:
Blue Bulls: Tries: Dries Scholtz (2), Danie Rossouw, Marius Delport, Akona Ndungane, Pierre Spies. Conversions: Derick Hougaard (4). Penalty: Derick Hougaard.
Free State Cheetahs: Tries: Ryno van der Merwe, Phillip Burger (3), Gavin Passens. Conversions: Willem de Waal (3).