Vodacom Bulls coach Johan Ackermann praised his side’s character after they held their nerve to edge the Scarlets 23-21 in Llanelli.
The win, secured with a 79th-minute penalty goal from the unerring boot of Handré Pollard, moved the Bulls up to seventh on the URC log with home matches against Zebre (9 May) and Benetton (16 May) to come.
It was a pleasing end to a four-week tour that began with an Investec Champions Cup last-16 playoff defeat to the Glasgow Warriors.
“The biggest positive and satisfaction after the tour is the fact that we’re still in the hunt,” Ackermann said. “We kept ourselves alive and our destiny is still in our own hands.”
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Ackermann was pleased with the platform laid by the forwards on Saturday night, particularly at set-piece.
“The lineouts were good, bar one or two where our timing or throw was off, and the scrums were dominant, especially in the first half.
“Luckily, the call at the end went our way when the referee recognised the [scrum] dominance and gave us that penalty. That was crucial for us.”
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Despite the victory, Ackermann admitted it was far from a complete performance.
“We didn’t play well over the 80 minutes,” he said. “We were accurate, but not that accurate, and at times we were our own worst enemy, allowing them to exit easily or get points.”
The Bulls were also hampered by yellow cards to Stedman Gans and Francois Klopper, forcing them to play with 13 men at one stage.
“The boys showed a lot of character,” he said. “Even with 13 players, we made good decisions, slowed the game down and managed it well.
“But we need to fix that [discipline] because it puts you under tremendous pressure.”
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Ackermann said the Bulls were happy to be returning to Pretoria.
“It’s been a tough four weeks away from home. For some players, with newborn children or who have just got married, it’s mentally a challenge. You could see it a bit in our performance.
“We were under pressure on tour after losing to Glasgow. You can easily lose another match and then you’re almost out of both competitions.
“[Wins against the Dragons and Scarlets] makes this a successful tour, but the job is not done.”
Photo: Kian Abdullah/Gallo Images
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