Super 14

(Kick-off is GMT)

Friday, March 26:
H'landers v Lions (06.35)
Brumbies v Chiefs (08.40)
Cheetahs v Reds (17.10)

Saturday, March 27:
H'canes v Sharks (06.35)
Waratahs v Blues (08.40)
Force v Bulls (11.10)

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Super 14

Saturday, March 20:
Crusaders 46-19 Lions
Highlanders 16-30 Sharks
Force 10-14 Waratahs
Stormers 21-8 Cheetahs

Friday, March 19:
Blues 39-34 Brumbies
Bulls 19-18 Hurricanes

Six Nations

Saturday, March 20:
Wales 33-10 Italy
Ireland 20-23 Scotand
France 12-10 England

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Newsletter

Super 14

Bulls' defence not a concern

Sun, 14 Mar 2010 23:53

Bulls coach Frans Ludeke has deflected criticism of his team's supposed defensive lapses, by pointing out that his team is unbeaten at the top of the Super 14 standings and have collected a full-house five points in all their matches thus far.

The defending champion Bulls continued their relentless unbeaten march in the Super 14 when they easily disposed of the Highlanders - winning 50-35 in Pretoria at the weekend.

Some critics have been quick to point to the fact that the Highlanders managed to score five tries and that the Bulls went missing for long periods in the second half.

But the true measure of their qualities should be looked for in the first quarter of the game.

They raced into an early 21-0 lead and by then the game was over as a contest.

The next hour the Bulls used as an experiment to try out a variety of moves - some with success.

They also gave all their replacements a good run and overall they will be pleased with another full-house five points and yet another 50-pointer, their third of the season.

They also scored seven tries, taking their total for the season to an amazing 24 after just four games.

The result was never in doubt.

"I am very pleased," the Bulls coach, Ludeke, said.

"We put 50 up again on the scoreboard and are still top of the standings. One cannot complain about something like that."

Bulls captain Victor Matfield also dismissed criticism of his team's defensive efforts.

"We may have lost concentration at times," Matfield said in his post-match reaction, adding that in the first half-hour all went in their favour.

"We did become a touch unstructured at times, with a few first-time tackles that were slipped.

"However, we will go back and work on those aspects for the next game," he said of the Hurricanes' visit to Loftus Versfeld on Friday.

Highlanders coach Glenn Moore admitted that the poor first half by his side laid the foundation for the Bulls win.

"We made too many errors early on. We dropped balls, could not cope with the high balls and allowed their ball carriers too much space. You can't do that and expect not to be punished. Not if you are playing against a quality side like the Bulls. We fought back well, but we never really had a change after that start."