Bulls must reduce their penalty count, says coach White
Reducing the penalty count against themselves will be a focus area for the Bulls when they prepare to face the unbeaten Sharks on Saturday, Bulls coach Jake White said.
The Bulls were forced to mount a Herculean defensive effort in the closing moments to hold out for a narrow 20-16 PRO14 Rainbow Cup SA win over the Stormers in Cape Town.
Faced with a Sharks team who have the ability to turn up the heat on attack, Saturday’s showdown at Loftus has the ingredients needed to produce an epic contest.
Down to 14 men in the closing minutes against the Stormers after Nizaam Carr was shown yellow for a dangerous tackle, the Bulls had to soak up intense pressure.
It was the Stormers’ second narrow defeat of the campaign on their new home ground.
“We conceded 19 penalties to eight.
“So, to get a result and win the game when you’ve conceded so many penalties, and obviously a yellow card, is pleasing,” White said.
“I mean, I’m really proud. “The Bulls have won a game again with 14 men in the backend of a game.
“I think the stats were 43 minutes ball-in-play, which is an incredible stat. Forty-three minutes of ball-in-play rugby means the guys had to work hard. And as I mentioned previously, 19 penalties to eight was important.
“We had a lot of opportunities, which we never finished.
“And we still found a way to win, which is always pleasing because the group’s growing as we stay together more.
“But I mean, it’s something we are going to have to look at during the week.
“I think it wasn’t just the scrums.
“As I said, I think there are a couple of situations there where we’ve got to be a bit more clever.
“This is a good Stormers team.i just looked during the warm-up for the match.
“There were 10 or 12 players who are originally from the Western Cape in our team — Embrose, Chris Smith, who was at Sacs, Zak Burger and Stravino Jacobs, and the list goes on.
“Nizaam Carr, hooker Johan Grobbelaar and all those guys.
“This is a head office of South African rugby, the Western Cape area, and you saw with the school matches how well the Western Cape guys can play rugby.
“I am really happy that we can come to the Cape from the north and get a win under the belt.”
The Sharks cemented their position at the top of the Rainbow Cup standings courtesy of a 34-26 bonus point victory over the Lions in Durban.
Lukhanyo Am’s talented Sharks team scored four tries inside the hour mark to pave the way for a comfortable and deserved victory.
However, the Durban side also had some lapses in concentration and discipline, which allowed the Lions to stay in the hunt for points.
As a result of their second bonus-point win in a row, the Sharks remain top of the log with 10 points, two points more than the Bulls (8), followed by the Stormers (2) and Lions (1).
In Saturday’s other match, the Stormers will be seeking for redemption when they face a winless Lions side at Ellis Park.