Victor Matfield, captain of the Bulls will reach another important milestone when he plays his 100th Super 14 game against the Hurricanes at Loftus Versfeld.
Matfield captained the Bulls for the 50th time in their 50-35 victory over the Highlanders this last weekend and will reach this milestone just before his side head on their four week overseas tour in defence of their Vodacom Super 14 title.
Matfield has played 91 times for the Bulls and eight times for the Cats in an illustrious career which has made him possibly the best lineout jumper world rugby has seen.
The Crusaders adapted best to the conditions to beat the Chiefs 26-19 in a tense Super 14 rugby clash here Friday.
With the wind behind them and a dry ground, the Crusaders ensured the game was played at a frenetic pace in the first half and turned with a 23-16 lead as they outscored the Chiefs two tries to one.
But when the rain came down at halftime, and the Crusaders faced the wind, they switched to a dogged pick-and-drive style as they slugged out the final 40 minutes in which the only rewards were a penalty apiece.
The Waratahs ran in 11 tries to thrash the Lions 73-12 at the Sydney Football Stadium on Friday.
The hosts fired on all cylinders as they outclassed a sorry-looking Lions side who have now lost five in a row. Drew Mitchell scored four tries, Lachie Turner and Josh Holmes both got braces while Wycliff Palu, Dean Mumm and Tom Carter also got in on the act.
The Brumbies managed to scrape past the Sharks for a narrow win in Canberra on Saturday.
For the second time in the week there was heartbreak for the Sharks as they fought all the way to death when a Matt Giteau penalty snatched back the lead to hand the home side victory.
The Lions suffered their second successive defeat in Australasia when they went down 24-13 to the Brumbies in Canberra on Friday.
The wet conditions made for a forwards battle which the Brumbies’ all-Wallaby pack dominated. The Lions had very little possession to speak of and never really troubled the Brumbies on the scoreboard.
Flyhalf Daniel Carter won a goalkicking duel with former teammate Stephen Brett to lead the Crusaders to a 33-20 win over the Blues in Super 14 rugby Saturday.
Carter kicked seven goals from seven attempts - three conversions and four penalties - for 18 points to steer the seven-time champions to their third win in four matches.
Brett, in his first match for Auckland against his former team, kicked four penalties and a dropped goal for 15 points. Canterbury scored tries through flanker George Whitelock plus centres Ryan Crotty and Robbie Fruean, while Auckland had a late try by halfback Alby Mathewson.
Referee Paul Marks denied the Sharks a penalty try at the death to gift the Waratahs a four point win in controversial circumstances in Sydney on Saturday. Read the rest of this entry »
The Vodacom Bulls continued their impressive title defence in the Vodacom Super 14 following their 48-38 victory over the Waratahs at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.
The victory by the Pretoria outfit was the only successful South African result after the Vodacom Cheetahs (24-31), Vodacom Stormers (19-17), the Auto & General Lions (33-18) and the Sharks (35-6) all conceded defeats this weekend.
Vodacom Bulls winger Francois Hougaard scored a brace of tries while Stephan Dippenaar, Gerhard van den Heever, Wynand Olivier and Jacques-Louis Potgieter all added five-pointers for the hosts.
The Waratahs though secured a bonus point for losing within seven of the Pretoria side. The defeat ensured that the Sydney franchise ended round three in eleventh position, while the Vodacom Bulls continued their dominance at the top of the log.
In Bloemfontein the Highlanders continued their undefeated run over the hosts in Bloemfontein on Saturday. The Otago side has now also won their last five games against the Vodacom Cheetahs, whose only win against the Highlanders was in Invercargill back in 1997 when the tourists outclassed the hosts to triumph 49-18.
The Auto & General Lions are still in search of their first victory in the 2010 Vodacom Super 14 following their 33-18 defeat to the Hurricanes in Wellington. The hosts secured their third win of the competition and are currently in second position on the log after round three.
Defending champions the Bulls proved too strong at Loftus Versfeld on the weekend in their Super 14 match as they notched up their second half century in two weeks, beating the Brumbies 50-32 in an entertaining match.
Flyhalf Morne Steyn scored two tries and kicked five conversions and five penalties as the home side picked up their second consecutive win in this year’s competition, with Steyn scoring 35 points in total.
A freak accident cost the Vodacom Bulls their utility back Francois Hougaard which could rule him out for up to six weeks.
Hougaard was training with his teammates and mis-stepped during a training move, twisting his knee and tearing his meniscus, the concave part of the cartilage of his knee.
The injury will mean he will be out of action for at least four weeks, but it will most likely be closer to six weeks when he gets onto the field again.
This will mean that Hougaard will miss the Vodacom Super 14 opening game against the Vodacom Cheetahs on February 11, deepening a crisis at the Bulls on the wing after the departure of Bryan Habana to the Vodacom Stormers.
Hougaard will undergo a scope to determine the extent of the damage this morning, but team doctor Org Strauss’s diagnosis is a six week layoff.
The Bulls were definitely the favourites going into the Super 14 final at Loftus on Saturday, but few could have foreseen the rampage that ensued. The Bulls beat the Chiefs61 - 17.
The Bulls players and management have for a while now spoken about their desire to build a dynasty, to start an era of dominance in the competition to rival that of the Crusaders.
At Loftus on Saturday, in front of a sell-out crowd awash in light blue, they added substance to their words with a performance that was emphatic as any seen in any final anywhere. It was their second title, and only two teams have won more Super 14 trophies now than they have – the Crusaders and the Blues.
The Bulls scored eight tries to two, they led 34-7 at half-time, the game was effectively over when they led 21-7 after just 15 minutes. The eight tries was a record for a Super 14 decider, so was the winning margin of 44 points, which eclipsed the 30 the Brumbies won by when they beat the Sharks 36-6 in Canberra in 2001.
Bulls coach Frans Ludeke have named Wynand Olivier as his number 12 for Saturday’s Super 14 Final against the Chiefs at Loftus, but time will tell if the inside centre will be fit for the encounter.
Olivier ran with the team on Tuesday and Ludeke is optimistic about his recovery but a final call will only be made later this week.
The Bulls’ first option is to play Olivier and Jaco Pretorius in the midfield but if Olivier does not recover Pretorius will again partner Marius Delport with the promising Gerhard van den Heever on the bench.
Ludeke has otherwise left the team that ensured a home final unchanged and he said that the team is looking forward to the clash against the Chiefs.
“It is a great opportunity to play in a final at Loftus and we are excited about the challenge that awaits us,” he said.
“We have prepared well and the team is focused on the job at hand.”
Captain Victor Matfield stressed that you never know when the opportunity to play in a home final will emerge again and this is one of the reasons why the Bulls are going to put in a massive effort on Saturday.
Bulls and Springbok scrumhalf Fourie du Preez will started running in training on Monday and will be given time to prove his fitness for the crucial Super 14 game against the Sharks.
Du Preez picked up a calf injury against the Force and did not play against the Cheetahs at Loftus on the weekend as a result.
Dr Org Strauss said on Monday morning that Du Preez will be closely monitored throughout the week and a final call as to whether he will be able to play against the Sharks will be made on Wednesday.
Strauss confirmed that apart from Du Preez there are no other serious injuries in the camp and everyone is eligible to play against the Sharks.
A bonus point in Durban will pave the way for a place in the semi-finals, but Frans Ludeke’s team knows that a win in the Shark tank will secure a play-off spot at fort Loftus.
Bakkies Botha appeared before SANZAR judicial officer Dennis Wheelahan in Sydney on Monday and received a three week ban for foul play.
Botha was cited following his team’s 20-6 win over the Waratahs at the weekend, and was charged with having struck the Waratahs captain and flank Phil Waugh with his forearm.
The judicial officer categorised the offence as ‘reasonably serious’ and after taking into account all aggravating and mitigating factors Botha, was suspended for three weeks.
This precludes the player from participating in all forms of the game up to and including the May 2.
As a result Botha will miss the encounters with the Brumbies (in Canberra this coming Saturday), Chiefs (in Pretoria on April 25) and the Western Force (Pretoria, May 2).
He will be available against to play against the Cheetahs in Pretoria on May 9 and the Sharks in Durban a week later.
Victor Matfield, captain of the Bulls will reach another important milestone when he plays his 100th Super 14 game against the Hurricanes at Loftus Versfeld.
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