Bulls edge Cardiff in Arms Park thriller
REPORT: The Bulls held on in the face of a late rally to edge Cardiff 18-12 in a thrilling United Rugby Championship encounter at Arm Park on Friday.
It was not flawless, but the Bulls used their powerful bench to subdue a Cardiff team determined to cause an upset in this Round Four encounter.
Getting set-piece superiority and the boot of flyhalf Chris Smith allowed the visitors to collect four valuable points.
* To recap all the drama, CLICK HERE!
Cardiff attempted to lift the tempo, as they did in the previous encounter between the two sides at this venue, but it was a stray kick and some deft handling saw Embrose Papier sneak over for the first try.
Another Cardiff error, a stray pass, saw wing Sebastian de Klerk race downfield for the second try - flyhalf Chris Smith converting one for a 12-0 lead after 14 minutes.
Just past the quarter mark, former Pumas Currie Cup-winning flyhalf Tinus de Beer set up Mason Grady for the home team's opening try. De Beer was wide with the conversion attempt - 5-12.
Both teams had opportunities, but great defence and a high error count left the score (12-5 to the visitors) unchanged going into the half-time break.
Early in the second half, the Bulls piled on the pressure with their big forwards taking the ball up, allowing Smith to stretch the lead to 15-5 from a resulting penalty.
However, a yellow card to Bulls centre David Kriel for a cynical foul, left the visitors a man down for 10 minutes.
Soon afterwards centre Rey Lee-Lo scored a try, picking the ball up in a ruck and sprinting clear. De Beer added the extras to close the gap to just three points - 12-15.
Just past the hour mark Smith made it a six-point game (18-12), slotting a penalty after a cynical foul by Cardiff inside their 22.
The Bulls pack - with the bench cleared - started taking control of the physical exchanges and getting the team on the front foot. It was accompanied by a string of scrum penalties.
The mounting pressure, combined with the clock running down, saw Cardiff starting to make some sloppy errors.
It allowed the Bulls to hold on for a win that saw them go top of the standings for at least the next 24 hours.
Man of the match: Centres Rey Lee-Lo and Willis Halaholo asked plenty of questions of the Bulls' defence. The visitors got plenty of value out of a powerful bench - Johan Grobbelaar, Ruan Nortje, Elrigh Louw and Cameron Hanekom. Starting prop Wilco Louw also deserves a mention. Our award goes to Bulls centre Stedman Gans, who was impressive with ball in hand, made some impressive tackles and finished with a match-saving turnover penalty two minutes from time.
The scorers
For Cardiff
Tries: Grady, Lee-Lo
Con: De Beer
For the Bulls
Tries: Papier, De Klerk
Con: Smith
Pens: Smith 2
Yellow card: David Kriel (Bulls, 52 - cynical foul, deliberate knock-down)
Teams
Cardiff: 15 Jacob Beetham, 14 Harri Millard, 13 Rey Lee-Lo, 12 Willis Halaholo, 11 Mason Grady, 10 Tinus de Beer, 9 Tomos Williams, 8 Lopeti Timani, 7 Ellis Jenkins (captain), 6 Alex Mann, 5 Rory Thornton, 4 Teddy Williams, 3 Rhys Litterick, 2 Efan Daniel, 1 Corey Domachowski.
Replacements: 16 Evan Lloyd, 17 Rhys Carré, 18 Will Davies-King, 19 Seb Davies, 20 Thomas Young, 21 Ellis Bevan, 22 Arwell Robson, 23 Cameron Winnett.
Bulls: 15 Devon Williams, 14 Sebastian de Klerk, 13 Stedman Gans, 12 David Kriel, 11 Sergeal Petersen, 10 Chris Smith, 9 Embrose Papier, 8 Mpilo Gumede, 7 Cyle Brink, 6 Nizaam Carr (captain), 5 Janko Swanepoel, 4 Reinhardt Ludwig, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Akker van der Merwe, 1 Simphiwe Matanzima.
Replacements: 16 Johan Grobbelaar, 17 Gerhard Steenekamp, 18 Mornay Smith, 19 Ruan Nortje, 20 Elrigh Louw, 21 Keagan Johannes, 22 Johan Goosen, 24 Cameron Hanekom.
Referee: Sam Grove-White (Scotland)
Assistant referees: Tom Spurrier (Wales) and Steff Edwards (Wales)
TMO: Stefano Penne (Italy)
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