The Bulls qualified for their second successive home final at their new venue in Soweto.

Moving to Orlando Stadium in Soweto turned out to be a momentous occasion for the Bulls! The home crowd support was excellent and had the Soweto flavour as the vuvuzelas were out in full force! It was great to see the stadium full of blue, mixed races in the crowd and plenty of dignitaries on hand for the match.

Many in Australia and New Zealand had predicted a Crusaders victory as they believed the Bulls would have lost momentum from resting players in the previous match. However it was the Bulls who started stronger.

I believed that for the Crusaders to win, they had to start well as they were always going to fade due to the travelling and altitude.
“I’m not going to use that (the travel) as an excuse. This is a really good Bulls side that deserved their victory. We were ready to go but we came up short and that’s entirely our fault. You can’t play catch-up against the Bulls” said Crusaders captain Riche McCaw.

The Bulls were well rested, and prepared for this and their defence was strong, a Deon Stegmann special led to a turnover and the Bulls were clinical in taking the ball through the phases before the pace and power of Pierre Spies finished the job.

Danie Rossouw scored a legitimate try soon after but the TMO ruled he had lost the ball.

Richie McCaw scored for the Crusaders soon after, but the Bulls weren’t perturbed. They spotted the weakness of the Crusaders under the high ball and Zane Kirchner followed his kick perfectly to score the Bulls second and open a handy lead that was never reigned in to put the Bulls under any real pressure.

2 Weeks ago the Crusaders believed they had the blueprint to beat the Bulls, but they were one dimensional. Their tactic to go wide was met with resolute defence, and when they failed to cross the advantage line they couldn’t get any momentum. They also lacked the ability to vary their play and produce a plan B.

“We weren’t allowed any space out wide and we didn’t adapt. When we did find some space we didn’t capitalise on our opportunities” said McCaw.

The Bulls had to do a lot of defending after the opening stages, helped largely by what I thought was a poor performance from ref Stu Dickinson. He was inconsistent which led to Victor Matfield being frustrated with the continual calls going against his side. However with all their ball and field position the Crusaders couldn’t make it count.

“It helped that we knew what their strategy would be. They didn’t offer any surprises but that didn’t make it any easier, we still had to defend well through 80 minutes and we did that” said Bulls coach Frans Ludeke.

A try in the second half to Zac Guildford was well executed as Zane Kirchner was found flat footed after Dewald Potgieter missed the cover tackle. However the Bulls kept on applying the pressure.

As we’ve so often seen in the past, Fourie du Preez is a game breaker. His vision to see the space down the short side, and the clinical execution for the match sealing try was brilliant.

“I said to Fourie afterwards – The big players come through in the big games and he turned the tide for us. That try put us out of reach. And Morne has taken some criticism for his form this season, but he showed his value tonight” said Bulls captain Victor Matfield.

One aspect of the Bulls game that worked well was the high kicks which were followed up with a committed chase.

“The strategy worked well on the day. The kickers were really accurate and our chasers put them under huge pressure. When we forced turnovers we had numbers and were able to capitalise. It all worked out nicely tonight” said Ludeke.

After du Preez’s try it was just a matter of winding the clock down and getting ready for next week’s final! The Bulls equalled their record winning margin against the Crusaders and have now beaten them in 3 semi-finals!

Bulls 39

Tries: Pierre Spies, Zane Kirchner, Fourie du Preez
Conversions: Steyn (3)
Penalties: Steyn (6)

Crusaders 24

Tries: Richie McCaw, Sean Maitland, Sam Whitelock
Conversions: Carter (3)
Penalty: Carter

Bulls player ratings:

1. Gurtho Steenkamp – 7

Did his job well and made numerous tackles.

2. Gary Botha – 6

Wasn’t his usual self around the breakdown and missed one crucial lineout throw early on. Solid in the set-pieces otherwise.

3. Werner Kruger – 6

Got penalised early on in the scrums but showed his strength later in the game as he started to gain the upper hand.

4. Danie Rossouw – 7

Scored a great try that was overruled by the TMO. A solid effort in the tight exchanges. Provided great go forward when needed. Hopefully the knock he tock late in the second half is not serious, it looked bad initially but the way he recovered suggested it was just a hard knock that may have hit a nerve.

5. Victor Matfield (c) – 8

Another superb performance all round from the skipper. Had one lineout stolen but then stole one back off Crusaders ball. Made numerous tackles and led the side awesomely!

6. Deon Stegmann – 8

Made a crucial steal at the beginning of the game that led to the Bulls first try. The Bulls never looked back, and that piece of play dictated the game. Got penalised a few times, but a good all round showing.

7. Dewald Potgieter – 8

Worked hard all game and a solid showing.

8. Pierre Spies – 8

Brilliant with ball in hand and took his try well. Made numerous tackles and worked tirelessly on defence. also showed great toe to match it with Zac Guildford.

9. Fourie du Preez – 10

A champion performance. Performed his role brilliantly, clearing the ball well and putting the box kick right on the money. Didn’t run much, but when there was a chance he saw it, and executed perfectly. Made the game safe for the Bulls, and showed the value of having a genuine game breaker in a side.

10. Morne Steyn – 9

Stepped up when it mattered. Kicked 9 from 10 and kept the Bulls scoreboard ticking over. Many of the kicks were difficult, but he showed that Orlando Stadium is no obstacle.

11. Francois Hougaard – 8

Minimal opportunities on attack, but stepped well when needed. His defence is under-rated, and he came in to make spot tackles whenever it was needed.

12. Wynand Olivier – 6

Quiet on attack and just couldn’t really break the line. Solid in defence but blotted his performance with a late hit.

13. Jaco Pretorious – 7

Minimal chances on attack. Carried the ball strongly an his defence in midfield meant the Crusaders couldn’t get the momentum they enjoyed in their previous encounter.

14. Jaco van der Westhuyzen – 8

Mopped up loose ball effectively, made his tackles and solid in all aspects.

15. Zane Kirchner – 7

Solid in all the basics and followed his kick well that led to his try. Hitting the backline really well and dangerous on attack, but will be disappointed to have spilt 2 balls on attack.

16. Bandise Maku – 7

Did his job well and ensured the scrum got better when he came on.

17. Bees Roux -

Not on long enough to make a decent rating.

18. Flip van der Merwe – 7

Great ball carries and provided the necessary impact when he came on.

19. Derick Kuun – 7

A handy player to bring on and took over Stegmann’s role to ensure the Bulls lost nothing. Worked hard on defence, making important tackles.

20. Jacques Louis Potgieter -

Not on long enough to make a decent rating.

21. Stephan Dippenaar – 7

Has been good on defence and whilst he doesn’t stand out, he does his job well.

22. Pedrie Wannenburg – 8

Carried the ball strongly, allowing the Bulls to play off him.