Jake White has heaped praise on the Vodacom Bulls’ performance after they survived a late comeback from French giants Lyon at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday in their Champions Cup debut.
The director of rugby deployed a team of second-stringers for the historic match, devoid of any of the starting XV that had featured in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship win against Cardiff earlier this month.
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The Vodacom Bulls’ performance showed great character and what will be pleasing to White is the depth that the victory created in his squad.
The hosts raced away to a 28-point lead through tries from wing Sibongile Novuka, Springbok flank Nizaam Carr and a brace from scrumhalf Bernard van der Linde. Lyon, though, pounced on a few defensive errors and fought back into the game at 42-36 after Australian centre Kyle Godwin scored in the 75th minute.
The French outfit had all the momentum in the dying minutes, but this young Bulls team was able to dig deep and get the job done, securing a bonus-point victory.
“People spoke about (us fielding) a B-team, and it was good motivation for those young guys,” White said. “The bench, although I put them on late, there were five forwards who were 22 or younger, and two backs around that age, and that pressure…
“The fact that they got five points against a good Lyon side in the Champions Cup, even though it’s at home, is unbelievable for us.
“As I said, one lock was 20, the tighthead is 20, the hooker is 21, the other lock is 22, WJ Steenkamp is 22, Keagan is 23, Bernard is 22… It’s phenomenal what those young guys did at the end. That is just going to make them so much better.
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“I am very proud of the win, and the last five minutes showed me a lot about the culture and understanding of winning at a club like this.”
The Vodacom Bulls will travel to England this week to face 2020 Champions Cup winners Exeter Chiefs on Saturday afternoon.
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