State of the URC: Bulls and Sharks climb log

RUGBY NEWS - The Vodacom Bulls and Sharks kept alive their hopes of a top-two log finish with crucial away wins in the United Rugby Championship on Saturday.

The Bulls trailed the Lions 11-10 at the break in the Jukskei derby and lost co-captain Elrigh Louw to what appeared to be a serious knee injury early in the second half, before being rescued by their bench and Willie le Roux, in particular.

The Springbok veteran replaced the misfiring Boeta Chamberlain at 10 and helped turn the game around for the Bulls, who ran out 35-22 bonus-point winners. That saw them climb to third on the log, with six wins in eight matches.

The Bulls will look to narrow the gap between themselves and second-placed Glasgow (who have played two matches more) when they take on the Stormers in Cape Town on February 8.

The Lions occupy 13th position on the log after a fourth consecutive URC loss, but are only five log points behind eighth-placed Edinburgh with two matches in hand. Their next game, against the Stormers at Ellis Park on February 15, could prove crucial in determining their play-off fate.

The Sharks bounced back from their Bordeaux battering with a 42-22 bonus-point win against Cardiff at the Arms Park. The visitors led 28-10 early in the second half, and while Cardiff fought back to reduce the deficit to six points, two late tries wrapped up a confidence-boosting victory for the injury-hit Sharks. John Plumtree’s team will now take a much-needed break before their blockbuster fixture against the Bulls at Loftus on February 15.

Coach John Dobson said the Stormers had one of their ‘worst days in the office’ in going down 36-12 to an understrength Leinster team missing their Ireland players. The visitors trailed 10-7 late in the first half in Dublin before losing flyhalf Manie Libbok and being blown away in the second half. The Cape side is 12th on the log but just three points outside the play-off spots with a game in hand over two teams above them (Bulls and Sharks). The Stormers will attempt to catch up when they host the Bulls on 8 February.