Free-flowing Bulls dismantle out-of-sorts Sharks at Loftus Versfeld

Dylan Coetzee

The Bulls celebrate a try in the United Rugby Championship.

The Bulls showed their quality as they put away the Sharks 44-10 in the heat at Loftus Versfeld in Saturday’s United Rugby Championship clash.

Jake White’s men were on fire in the first period securing the bonus point before the break powered by a Stedman Gans double with Kurt-Lee Arendse and Akker van der Merwe also crossing.

The Sharks added to their first-half Curwin Bosch penalty with a penalty try just after half-time. Scoring slowed after that with Elrich Louw crossing just after the hour mark and Van der Merwe grabbing his brace in the last 10 minutes. Johan Goosen was on point with the boot adding four conversions and two penalties.

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It was the visitors who started the game really well and they were rewarded with a penalty after two minutes which Bosch nudged over. However, the momentum of the game changed soon after that thanks in part to a Goosen penalty.

Gans was first to make the Bulls‘ momentum count after the centre scored from some lovely interplay down the right-hand touchline in the 13th minute. It took only nine minutes for the star to score again with a bruising run seeing him cross for the second try of the game. Goosen added conversions for both tries.

The fly-half, however, would go on to miss a conversion on the stroke of half-time after Van der Merwe opened his account with a 39th-minute try.

Sharks boss John Plumtree clearly had a strong word at the break as his side stormed out of the sheds forcing a penalty try in the first 10 minutes. However, the Durbanites could not make it count as the Bulls crept back into control.

Captain on the day, Louw hammered home the Bulls’ dominance as he crashed over in the 62nd minute for a converted try. Goosen added a penalty in the 66th minute before a delicate dink over the top of the rushing defensive line found its way into Van der Merwe’s hands, allowing him to stroll in under the posts. Goosen added the extras to seal an emphatic victory.

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