Rampant Bulls has Ludeke Smiling

Vodacom Blue Bulls coach Frans Ludeke reflected on mission accomplished after going back to the top of the Absa Curie Cup standings with a 41-12 victory over the Wildeklawer Griquas.

"We're happy with the five points, it's exactly where we wanted to be at the start of a new week," Ludeke told www.sarugby.co.za. "We might not have played the way we wanted to play, but Griquas challenged us and took the game to us, so I'm happy overall.

"There were plenty of positives to take out of this match but there's a bit we need to work on," he said.

The Vodacom Blue Bulls moved back to the top of the Absa Currie Cup standings with the victory at Loftus Versfeld on Friday evening as the Bulls claimed a four-try bonus point.

They moved one point clear of the Sharks but were made to work hard for that all-important bonus point and had to wait until the final minutes of the match before securing the extra point.

Loo! se forward Dewald Potgieter barged over from a scrum shortly before full-time, his team having been denied by the TMO just minutes before.

Afterwards skipper Wikus van Heerden admitted how important was the four-try bonus point: "There's still a long way to go in the competition and our aim is to get a home semifinal."

The Vodacom Blue Bulls were first on the board in the 17th minute when flyhalf Morné Steyn slotted a penalty, followed by two more from the Bulls No.10, who ended the day with 21 points as he took his tally for the season past the 100-point mark. Steyn – who is relishing life as the Bulls' first-choice pivot this season – is now just eight points behind the Xerox Lions' Earl Rose, the season's top points-scorer.

Bulls fullback Tiger Mangweni scored his team's first try in the 37th minute for a 14-0 lead, but just when it seemed the flood-gates would open up, Griquas hit back through their SA Sevens winger MJ Mentz, the visitor! s going into the break at 14-5 down.

The Bulls, how! ever, wa sted no time in making an impact in the second half with flanker Deon Stegmann bursting away from a ruck and running 50 metres to score. Steyn added the conversion and at 21-5 there was always going to be just one winner in this match. But, to their credit, Griquas were not about to allow their hosts to walk all over them and flyhalf Tobie Botes – a regular scrumhalf playing in the No.10 shirt – scored a fine individual try to keep his team in the match at 21-12.

Steyn goaled two more penalties to stretch his team's lead to 27-12, but poor option-taking and kicking out of hand saw the scoreboard untroubled until the final 10 minutes when Springbok prop Gürthro Steenkamp crashed over from a line-out to give his team hope of registering that all-important bonus point.

The Bulls battered the Griquas line for some time only to be denied by the Television Match Official in the 77th minute. The Bulls had the scrum, which became a penalty. They then kicked to ! touch and won another scrum, with replacement No.8 Potgieter eventually forcing his way over for his team's fourth score.

Top points-scorers:
111 – Earl Rose (Xerox Lions)
103 – Morné Steyn (Vodacom Blue Bulls)
75 – Willem de Waal (Vodacom WP)
68 – Chris Rossouw (Vodacom Free State Cheetahs)
51 – Justin Peach (Boland Cavaliers)

Top try-scorers:
6 – Jacques Botes (The Sharks)
4 – Earl Rose (Xerox Lions), Willie Wepener (Xerox Lions)
3 – John Daniels (Boland Cavaliers), Danwel Demas (Boland Cavaliers), Keegan Daniel (The Sharks), Rouan Cloete (Valke), Jan Kruger (Valke), Dawid Pretorius (Valke), John Mametsa (Vodacom Blue Bulls), Tiger Mangweni (Vodacom Blue Bulls), Wynand Olivier (Vodacom Blue Bulls), Wikus van Heerden (Vodacom Blue Bulls), Pedrie Wannenburg (Vodacom Blue Bulls), Fabian Juries (Vodacom FS Cheetahs), Wylie Human (Vodacom WP), Doppies la Grange (Xerox Lions), Jaco Pretorius (Xerox Lions), Franco van! der Merwe (Xerox Lions), Jano Vermaak (Xerox Lions)

Issued by SA Rugby and ABSA