Blue Bulls smash WP

Silly boy: WP could ill-afford ill-discipline

The Blue Bulls moved back to the top of the Currie Cup table with a comprehensive 37-6 win over Western Province at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on Friday.

The home team produced a late blitz to outscore WP by four tries to nil, secure a bonus point and celebrate their 70th anniversary in style.

WP can now forget about making the semi-finals while the Blue Bulls are looking more than ever like going all the way.

To be fair, the scoreline does not do justice to a Western Province side that matched their hosts for most of the game. The young WP pack stood up admirably to the much vaunted opposition but a few fatal mistakes allowed the Bulls to get their noses in front and the thin Highveld air did the rest as the Cape Town side ran out of legs in the last quarter.

The opening exchanges were dominated by the Blue Bulls who, while never having the dominance up front that they expected, had their visitors looking shell shocked.

A mistake from inexperienced fly-half Joe Pietersen, who kicked a 22 restart straight out, allowed the Blue Bulls into the strike zone. Morné Steyn then opened the scoring with a penalty after a few minutes of sustained pressure from the home side.

Blue Bulls were doing the damage in the rucks, where they were consistently relieving the Province runners of possession.

WP looked in trouble when Schalk Brits was told to take a ten minute break for a no-arms tackle, and Steyn doubled the lead. But Pietersen managed to limit the early damage with a long range penalty and the score was 6-3 at the end of the first quarter.

Speedster Tonderai Chavhanga waisted a chance to turn for the tide for WP when he dropped an easy pass while in space out wide. Province were slowly clawing their way back into the game and when Gurthrö Steenkamp tried to make 19-year-old WP prop JC Kritzinger look out of his depth by scrumming up, referee Mark Lawrence gave Pietersen an opportunity to level the scores.

The WP fly-half duly obliged and it was all square after half-an-hour.

The Blue Bulls were getting rattled and started to chirp Lawrence. The highly experienced ref was having none of it. Pietersen missed the ensuing penalty but the visitors clearly had their hosts frustrated.

Brits had the crowd on their feet when he made a run worthy of a back-line player. The hooker stepped through three or four tackles before turning on the pace. A desperate gang-tackle from three Bulls players had him trapped on his back as he crashed over the try-line, to the relief of the Loftus faithful.

Steyn hit an upright with a penalty attempt on the stroke of half time, and although both teams followed up with a series of daring moves, neither could break the deadlock and the hooter call a halt to proceedings.

The second half started at a frenetic pace and Blue Bulls wing John Mametsa finally scored the first try of the evening after 53 minutes. The Pretoria team had been camped in the WP 22 for five minutes and with the visitors defence stretched to the maximum the ball was sent out to the 28-year-old wing, who dotted down just inches inside the corner post.

Steyn added the extra two from the touchline and the Blue Bulls had their tails up.

Another mistake from Pietersen cost his side dearly. With WP on the attack he made a nothing kick which Mametsa could easily claim before punting the ball up field with no one at home at the back for Province. From the ensuing scrum Steyn made a piercing run that gave his pack the go forward and replacement prop Werner Kruger was on hand to second his side's second try.

Steyn added the extras to put his side fourteen points clear and the result looked done and dusted.

The wheels came off the Province cart when AJ Venter, who didn't even have enough time to gather a sweat after coming on from the bench, was sent back to the sidelines for a stupid after-the-whistle punch.

Steyn slotted three more points and the only remaining question was whether the Bulls would have enough time to secure a bonus point.

The rugby gods looked down favourably on the Pretoria side who scored both the required tries in the dying moments of the game. The first came from the captain himself as Wikus van Heerden showed amazing leg strength to push his way over after a pick and drive from the Bulls pack.

Full-back Tiger Mangweni scored the last and probably the best try of the game deep into injury time. Springbok centre Wynand Olivier, who is having a fantastic season, ran it up from deep inside his own half before Mangweni shrugged off two tackles to seal the vital bonus for the home side.

The scorers:

For the Blue Bulls:

Tries: Mametsa, W. Kruger, Van Heerden, Mangweni

Cons: Steyn 2

Pens: Steyn 4

For Western Province:

Pens: Pietersen 2

Yellow cards: Brits (WP - 12th minute - shoulder charge), Venter (WP - 72nd minute - punch)

Blue Bulls: 15 Tiger Mangweni, 14 Akona Ndungane, 13 Wynand Olivier, 12 Wayne Julies, 11 John Mametsa, 10 Morné Steyn, 9 Francois Hougaard,8 Pedrie Wannenburg, 7 Wikus van Heerden (c), 6 Deon Stegmann, 5 Wilhelm Steenkamp, 4 Juandré Kruger, 3 Rayno Gerber, 2 Derick Kuün, 1 Gurthrö Steenkamp.

Replacements: 16 Bandise Maku, 17 Werner Kruger, 18 Dewald Potgieter, 19 Jacques Burger, 20 Heini Adams, 21 Burton Francis, 22 Marius Delport.

Western Province: 15 Gio Aplon, 14 Wylie Human, 13 PJ Vermeulen, 12 Gcobani Bobo (c), 11 Tonderai Chavhanga, 10 Joe Pietersen, 9 Bolla Conradie, 8 Nick Köster, 7 Francois Louw, 6 Pieter Louw, 5 Ross Skeate, 4 Adriaan Fondse, 3 JC Kritzinger, 2 Schalk Brits, 1 Wicus Blaauw.

Replacements: 16 Deon Fourie, 17 Schalk Ferreira, 18 AJ Venter, 19 Conraad Britz, 20 Dewaldt Duvenhage, 21 Matthew Rosslee, 22 Morgan Newman.

Referee: Mark Lawrence

Touch judges: Willie Roos, Cobus Wessels

TMO: Johann Meuwesen