The Vodacom Bulls opened their Vodacom United Rugby Championship account with a well-deserved dominant 47-13 win over Zebre Parma on Saturday night, giving themselves an early chance to lead the standings after the first round.
And while it may be hard to quibble about a 40 point victory away from home in a tough competition, it was - especially at this early stage of the competition - difficult to say if the Bulls were really that good or if Zebre were really, really bad.
The perennial cellar dwellers from Italy are normally a lot better at the start of the season, but there have been many personnel changes, and a new coach, and their performance on the night, while bordering on brave, may fill their ranks with trepidation for the season that is about to hit them.
This Bulls side was missing more than a half a dozen Springbok players who are on the road with the national side in Australia. Further to that, there are a few more that are injured or unavailable - Cobus Wiese is on leave at the moment while Embrose Papier has an ankle injury, for instance.
DOMINANCE
But those that were there had more than the measure of their Italian counterparts, although given the challenges they will face this season it is difficult not to call a large part of their game sloppy on the night.
Such was the dominance that they were finding holes in the defence from slow ball, and scored seven tries to one - but that many Bulls fans out there would be disappointed as they left probably another half dozen on the park. There were several chances in both halves that were ruined by silly errors, knock ons and on two occasions were held up over the line. A more clinical side would have put 80 on Zebre on the night.
But perhaps that is being harsh. This is a Bulls side that is only in week one of the competition and they will have a lot to work on despite the big win. But they will also know they face Munster next week in a big clash that they desperately want to win to give themselves the beststart to the competition and a successful tour.
And given the fact their Boks will be back in week three for the derby against the Lions, they will certainly know the standard needs to be lifted.
LOOSE AND WAYWARD
Saying that, and because it is understandable that a team can tend to get a bit loose and wayward when presented with so much ball to play with, the Bulls won’t be losing sleepless nights over it.
For one, there were some great cameos. Paul de Wet looked hungry for action and would have been a popular man of the match. Rynhardt Ludwig is back from injury and had a blinder at five lock, upping the competition for that jersey in the place of the departed Ruan Nortje.
The scrum looked solid in the first half as well, while Stravino Jacobs had a few good runs, Sebastian de Klerk and later Hakeem Kunene didn’t look out of their depth at all on the other wing.
Across the park there wasn’t much to be concerned about, other than accuracy and being a lot more clinical. And that would be a luxury for most coaches, but for the Bulls they know they have to find that sooner rather than later.
POOR START
Part of that was the way they started - the Bulls coughed up so much possession in the opening 20 that they didn’t see the ball much. It finally took them going back to their basics - a demolition job of a rolling maul that twisted and turned its way to the line and when Juann Else
broke away to try and score, he was illegally held and referee Andrew Brace had no option but to a
ward a penalty try and send Zebre lock Matteo Canali packing with a yellow card.
The Bulls then went further ahead with two quick tries. First a turnover from the kickoff secured a blindside move with Ludwig running onto the perfect pass, and then De Wet got his name on the scoresheet to widen the gap even further.
That was taken further just after halftime when the team marched forward and almost every Bull touched the ball, ending with a canter in by Ruan Vermaak without a defender near him. Zebre were finished and the Bulls were only getting started.
WAY TOO STRONG
But getting started meant they got loose for far too long. Overzealous, poor options and bad mistakes cost them from running away with the game early. So much so that the first opportunity Zebre had, Allesandro Fusco found his way over from close range.
The Bulls probably fluffed another half dozen chances in the half, with Harold Vorster’s score the only consolation they had for their efforts. From half breaks to lost lineouts, there was a coach’s book of mistakes for Monday’s review.
Despite all of that they still had too much for Zebre, who were only hanging on now. Even with a late yellow against Jeandre Rudolph for a cynical dive over a ruck, they still had too much.
Ludwig added a second almost on full time and Zak Burger got the final say three minutes into injury time. A bonus point win away from home and a big scoreline, but the Bulls won’t feel satisfied.
And in reality they probably shouldn’t in any case. There are tougher encounters waiting against teams that won’t be so forgiving. And they know that.
Score
Zebre Parma - try: Allesandro
Fusco. Conversion: Tommasso Allen. Penalties: Allen (2).
Vodacom Bulls - tries: Penalty
try, Reinhardt Ludwig (2), Paul de Wet, Ruan Vermaak, Harold Vorster, Zak Burger. Conversions: Curwin Bosch (4), Willie le Roux.