DELIGHT FOR KOLISI AS STORMERS SINK BULLS
Credit given to Stormers but decisions ‘tough on us’
BULLS coach John Mitchell conceded that the Stormers pack was dominant during his side’s 29-17 Super Rugby loss at Newlands on Saturday‚ but he was left confused by some refereeing decisions.
The defeat left the Bulls at the bottom of the standings in the South African Conference with 20 points from 10 matches.
The Stormers moved to 22 points‚ but have played one game more.
The Stormers led 12-0 after 11 minutes but the Bulls fought back and briefly held a 17-12 lead after Jason Jenkins’s 48th-minute try.
But a minute later the Stormers retook the lead when fullback SP Marais scored from the restart and the Bulls could not bridge the gap.
The Stormers pack dominated the scrums and the home team’s lineout also had the better of the Bulls’ polished set piece.
In fact‚ both were areas the Bulls dominated on their way to a 33-23 win over the Stormers at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria earlier in the season.
“The Stormers won the forward battle‚ that was my view‚ so we will take it on the chin‚” Mitchell said at the post-match media conference.
“But I thought Jacko [referee Glen Jackson] was tough on us. I am not sure we got the rub of the green. We will look at it.
“Especially at the scrum time when you have knees on the ground, the calls could go either way.
“The Stormers won the early races and then dug deep when we came back at them and led 17-12, so they showed character and all credit to them.
“I felt it was a very untidy performance from us, and after putting ourselves right back in it at 17-12 to not take command of our position from there is something we are going to have to learn from.
“The way we see it when we lose at home like we did last week‚ it means we have to get one back away from home. This defeat means we have to win another one away and make sure we win at home.
“This conference is still wide open and ultimately we feel our destination is still in our hands.”
Stormers captain Siya Kolisi, celebrating his 100th match for the franchise, was delighted with the outcome.
He said he would only celebrate his 100th cap with a win and his team duly delivered thanks to heroic defence and a pack that mowed down the Bulls’ eight.
Not even a yellow card to hooker Ramone Samuels‚ who otherwise had an impressive game‚ was enough to derail the Stormers who scored four tries to the Bulls’ two and kept their playoff hopes alive.
“It was a good day for the team, the things we spoke about in the week came together like we wanted,” Kolisi said.
“But there is still a lot we need to improve. We are never satisfied with our game and our focus is the [Waikato] Chiefs match now.”
Bulls captain Burger Odendaal acknowledged the control the Stormers imposed on the pattern of play.
“Hats off to the Stormers, they did well to cut off our set-piece and we couldn’t get any momentum.”
Scorers:
Stormers 29: Tries: Damian Willemse‚ Wilco Louw‚ SP Marais‚ Ramone Samuels. Conversions: Willemse (3). Penalty: SP Marais.
Bulls 17: Tries: Lood de Jager‚ Jason Jenkins. Conversions: Handre Pollard (2). Penalty: Pollard. – TimesLIVE