Jake White says the South African derby between his Vodacom Bulls and the DHL Stormers – which drew the second biggest crowd of the season in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship – was like a Test match.
The visiting Vodacom Bulls came out on top by the narrowest of margins in Cape Town as they won a nine-try thriller 33-32 to strengthen their grip on the third spot in the league table and move within two points of second-placed Glasgow Warriors.
“These derbies are what it is all about,” said their head coach White.
“People will talk about this north-south derby for a long, long time. It felt a bit like a Test. There were moments where it looked like we were going to win, and then all a sudden, there were times where everyone thought the Stormers were going to win,”
“That’s what you want – not as a coach because you get old! – but as a supporter, you want to be able to watch a game like that and go ‘Jeez, that’s great entertainment’”
“Literally, until the last play of the game, it could have gone the other way.
“The Stormers were never going to go away. They were always going to ask questions that no other team would ask us anywhere. It’s not an easy ride to come here. I am very happy that we got a bonus point win.”
The derby clash attracted a crowd of 47,171, a figure only surpassed in the Vodacom URC this season by the 80,468 that watched Leinster Rugby take on Munster Rugby at Croke Park in October.
The Tshwane side will have an opportunity to beat that attendance record this coming weekend when the Vodacom Bulls host Durbanites, the Hollywoodbets Sharks, on the 15th of February at 17h00, tickets start from R 100.00c only through Ticketpro.
“I said to the Cape Town people that I really think it’s unbelievable you fill your stadium,” revealed White.
“It just shows how important rugby is and it’s also a compliment to the Vodacom Bulls. If you say this is the big fixture, then at least I know we are doing something right.”
Reflecting further on the occasion, he said: “If you want to be remembered as one of the best players, you have got to play well in the biggest games.
“That was the challenge I gave the group as individuals and as a team – how good will we be in front of a full house in Cape Town?
“Playing in front of a crowd like that can only be a benefit to us. The more our players experience this, the more they feel that pressure, the more they are exposed to this, the better it’s going to be.”
It proved to be a fluctuating contest, with the Vodacom Bulls being outscored by five tries to four, but coming out on top through the boot of centre David Kriel who landed five shots at goal.
There was late drama when the Stormers had the chance to snatch the spoils after flanker Ben-Jason Dixon touched down in the 78th minute, but Clayton Blommetjies was off target with his conversion attempt.
Assessing the game, White said: “It was almost like we got out of jail, but we put ourselves there so many times. It was our own mistakes. There were ten minutes of madness before halftime.
“We tried everything we could to actually lose that game! The fact we got out of it and won is fantastic, but we are going to have to be a little bit more controlled and composed. There were times when we were rushing it too much.”
