Scarlets fade late as Bulls pull away in Pretoria heat

Bulls54-26 Scarlets: Welsh side’s execution fades in Pretoria heat as URC away struggles continue

Scarlets arrived in Pretoria with a game plan built on attacking rugby and left with a familiar outcome, as Bulls pulled away in the final quarter to win 54-26 in a frantic United Rugby Championship encounter that produced 12 tries.

For long stretches, the plan actually worked. Scarlets moved the ball with ambition and purpose, and at 26-26 in the second half the contest was genuinely in the balance. What followed was a lesson in execution under pressure. The searing Pretoria heat appeared to take its toll on the visitors, and the South African side dominated the closing stages, adding four tries to turn a level match into a comfortable win.

The operational context shaped the task from the outset. Head coach Dwayne Peel was without eight Wales squad players, along with key centre Johnny Williams, while Bulls fielded a matchday 23 boasting eight Springboks. On the final weekend before the URC breaks for the November internationals, that imbalance in available personnel was always going to test the Welsh side’s depth.

Bulls’ forward platform delivered early. A series of powerful carries culminated in flanker Jeandre Rudolph going over, and the home side’s control soon told again. Full-back Willie le Roux cut through a scrambled defence, and after a breathless phase of play Rudolph’s clever pass sent winger Dylan Maart over in the corner. At 19-0, a home win looked a formality.

Scarlets, though, kept faith with their approach. Hooker John McKee scored out wide, and then came a move worth remembering: second row Alex Groves broke clear in midfield, linked with Gareth Davies and Fletcher Anderson, and Anderson offloaded superbly for Sam Lousi to touch down. The Welsh side turned around trailing by just seven points and still firmly in the contest.

The second half brought moments that swung on fine margins. Scarlets seemed to have drawn level when full-back Ioan Nicholas latched on to a chip from Cameron Leggat-Jones and put Davies under the posts, only for the try to be ruled out after TMO intervention. From the resultant penalty, Bulls kicked to the corner and a line-out drive set the platform for replacement Marcel Coetzee to burrow over from close range.

Scarlets refused to yield. Archie Hughes, who came in on the wing for Ioan Jones moments before kick-off, was denied a try by the TMO only to score in the corner after Stedman Gans was yellow-carded. Fifteen minutes into the second half the scores were level, Nicholas cutting loose to tee up a try for the in-form Joe Roberts, his fourth in two games and another nod to Wales head coach Steve Tandy. Hughes’ score had earlier secured a bonus point as well as levelling the contest.

Then the home side’s finishing power settled the matter. Coetzee added a second score from a rolling maul, fellow replacements Sebastian de Clerk and Johan Grobbelaar capitalised on a tiring defence, and Maart barged over for his second try. Bosch converted seven times as Bulls ran out 54-26 winners, having maintained their perfect home record and moved up to second in the table.

For Scarlets, the pattern will feel painfully familiar. As in Cape Town the previous week, the side faded in the latter stages and was again forced to settle for a solitary losing bonus point. Two positive showings and two points in South Africa represent tangible returns from a demanding trip, but the wider delivery remains a concern: the side now has just one win from five league games and lies 14th in the table.

The raw material is there. The attacking play, the willingness to run from deep, and the ability to stay in a contest against a Springbok-laden opponent all point to a functioning game plan for three quarters of the match. What is missing is the capacity to sustain it for the full 80 minutes, particularly in the closing quarter against sides with deeper benches and home conditions in their favour. Closing out tight matches, not creating chances in them, is now the clear gap between Scarlets’ performances and their results.

A full report of the match is available at https://www.bbc.com/sport/rugby-union/articles/c6kglpg71wgwo, where the scorecard and line-ups are set out in detail.