Comment by Ashfak Mohamed, at Cape Town Stadium
PHEW... What a sensational finish that was in what turned out to be a thrilling encounter between the Stormers and Bulls.
A lot of the blame for the Stormers’ defeat will go to replacement back Clayton Blommetjies for missing that relatively easy late conversion of Ben-Jason Dixon’s try – and had he slotted it, the Capetonians probably would’ve won the game.
But both teams’ first-choice kickers, Jurie Matthee and David Kriel, missed a few fairly straightforward shots at goal, so it’s a bit unfair to single out Blommetjies alone.
In the end, it was a terrific game of rugby, and while the Bulls emerged 33-32 winners at a packed Cape Town Stadium on Saturday, the Stormers can feel delighted about the fighting spirit that they showed on a warm afternoon.
On paper, it looked like John Dobson’s team would be out-gunned as they were missing a number of top players, with the latest to go down being No 5 lock JD Schickerling – joining the likes of Manie Libbok, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Damian Willemse and others on the sidelines.
But as we have seen before, the Stormers grow an extra arm and a leg whenever they face their arch-rivals, and in recent years, the Bulls crumbled under the onslaught.
It looked like it would be the case once more as over 47 000 spectators urged their weakened Stormers side to greater heights, even recovering from a second-minute Cobus Wiese Bulls try to lead 17-15 before halftime.
The hosts played with great tenacity despite their scrum creaking under the weight of the powerhouse Bulls tighthead Wilco Louw, who produced an exhibition in how a No 3 should keep his back straight and present the perfect picture for the referee to award him penalties.
Warrick Gelant was as lively as ever, Wandisile Simelane was full of running, Jurie Matthee kept things going at the back and Evan Roos got stuck into opposite No 8 Cameron Hanekom with glee.
Cameron Hanekom = BUILT DIFFERENT 💪🔥
This is how you set the tone for a North v South derby 💥@Vodacom #URC | #STOvBUL pic.twitter.com/d3t2gGQBbt
But the Bulls’ physicality and scrum domination took its toll on the Stormers forwards, and when prop Jan-Hendrik Wessels crashed over to put them 12-7 ahead after 20 minutes, the visitors remained focused instead of letting the occasion get to them.
David Kriel slotted a few crucial goal-kicks, Harold Vorster landed a heavy blow with his early second-half touchdown, and then the Stormers roared back while Gerhard Steenekamp was off for a yellow card, Evan Roos and Warrick Gelant grabbing five-pointers.
And while Hanekom was the official Player of the Match for an industrious display – although he needs to sort out his handling and claiming kick-offs – the difference-maker for the Bulls in the final quarter was replacement hooker Akker van der Merwe.
He made a massive steal to earn a breakdown penalty when the Bulls were under the pump inside their 22 in the 67th minute, and then claimed a brilliant intercept in the lead-up to what turned out to be Ruan Vermaak’s match-winning try.
The Bulls looked down and out as the Stormers made a flurry of incursions into their half in the last five minutes, but White’s team produced some outstanding defence before Dixon’s last-gasp try.
A thriller right to the very end 🍿
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) February 8, 2025
The Vodacom Bulls hold on to win in Cape Town 👏👏#VURC pic.twitter.com/uV8q7n4R2x
Yes, had Blommetjies slotted the conversion, it would’ve been a different result.
But overall, the Bulls deserved to break their Cape Town duck.
Points-Scorers
Stormers 32 – Tries: Frans Malherbe, Salmaan Moerat, Evan Roos, Warrick Gelant, Ben-Jason Dixon. Conversions: Jurie Matthee (2). Penalty: Matthee (1).
Bulls 33 – Tries: Cobus Wiese, Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Harold Vorster, Ruan Vermaak. Conversions: David Kriel (2). Penalties: Kriel (3).