Bulls vs Benetton

There will be a 'little bit of an edge', but coach Jake White has vowed that his Bulls team won't be caught cold by Benetton.

They’re competitive and have a certain style that suits them and keeps them in the game. “The one advantage is that we’ve played them before, and we didn’t play well. “It’s two ’o clock in the afternoon and we are playing at altitude. We’d like to use the altitude as an advantage, and we’d like to play a style that’s suited us. “It gives it a little bit of an edge this week, because we probably got found out when we played them the last time. Eleven or 12 of those guys played for the Italian national team that beat Wales in Wales, and that would show you that they have improved,” White said yesterday.

Benetton were quick out of the blocks, reminiscent of their dominant display in the Rainbow Cup final, but the Bulls eventually managed to iron out their ...

So, it’s not just about the breakdowns, but we need to show a bit of calmness, and we lost the ball a few times near the tryline. But we are going to have to improve if we want to get better.” “It (not finishing well) is a concern, but we got there many, many times and didn’t finish. “We kicked the ball out directly three or four times, or we ran with the ball and kicked it away. “It was almost the same as when we faced Benetton the last time – we let them get a good start. We also couldn’t get out of our half a few times, and it began there,” White said.

The Bulls were made to work hard for a 46-29 United Rugby Championship victory over Benetton in Pretoria.

The result strengthens the Bulls’ play-off prospects, having come into the weekend in the eighth and final qualifying berth. However, Marco Bortolami’s men dominated the early stages at Loftus Versfeld, opening up a 13-0 lead thanks to a Tommaso Menoncello try and the boot of Rhyno Smith. Menoncello added a consolation after Niccolo Cannone had been red-carded for a closed fist to the chin of Arno Botha.

Mornay Smith of the Bulls challenged by Simone Ferrari of Benetton Rugby during their United Rugby Championship match at Loftus Versfeld Stadium. Image: Samuel ...

The Bulls scored an opportunist try through Kurt-Lee Arendse who pounced onto a loose ball and ran half the length of the field to score. Two Rhyno Smith penalties for Benetton helped take the visitors to a 13-0 lead inside the first 20 minutes. It was left to centre Tommaso Menoncello to hack the ball ahead and get to it first inside the Bulls' in-goal area. After some deft handling, including by loose head prop Ivan Neme, Benetton ventured into the Bulls 22 but lost possession before the hosts returned the favour. In the first half the hosts were frustrated in the ruck, where Benetton were able to relieve pressure with timely penalties when the Bulls ventured into attacking positions. Bulls break the shackles in the second half to down Benetton

The Bulls were made to work hard for their URC win against Benetton at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on Saturday.

In the final quarter Arendse then set up the try that sealed the contest with a brilliant counter-attack. The impression was that this was a sickly Bulls side, their usual confident attitude not being there, as they missed 11 of the 36 tackles they had to make in the first half and were also lethargic at the breakdowns, being turned over five times. When the Bulls get gainline dominance they are hard to stop and that’s a fact!