The Vodacom Bulls will approach the Vodacom United Rugby Championship Grand Final against Leinster with the mindset of third time lucky when the teams meet in a repeat of last year’s decider at Croke Park in Dublin on Friday evening, in what is set to be a humdinger of a match.
The men from Pretoria secured their spot in the Grand Final of the cross-hemisphere spectacle for the third season in a row – and fourth in five attempts – two weeks ago when they edged the Glasgow Warriors 22-21 in Scotland.
No team has appeared in more Vodacom URC Grand Finals, but the Vodacom Bulls have not won the competition yet, with four different champions crowned in the last four seasons in the DHL Stormers, Munster, Glasgow Warriors, and Leinster.
The Edinburgh semi-final victory was the Vodacom Bulls’ eighth win on the trot in the competition, and with momentum and confidence counting in their favour, they will be desperate to avenge their 32-7 defeat against the Irish giants in the final last year.
Adding to their motivation, the Vodacom Bulls will also want to make up for their 47-14 defeat against Leinster in Dublin in their last outing in Ireland last season, and prove that they can repeat the success they have enjoyed against the Irish province in their last two matches in South Africa – in the pool stages earlier this season and the semi-final in the 2023/2024 season.
Johan Ackermann’s team will, however, be under no illusions about the challenge that awaits as Leinster try to overcome the disappointment of suffering a heavy defeat against Bordeaux in the Investec Champions Cup final a few weeks ago by securing back-to-back Vodacom URC titles.
Their impressive home track record this season, which shows only one defeat, will also boost Leinster’s confidence going into the match – although given the small margins between the teams this season, with both sides having won 14 of their 20 matches including the quarter-final and semi-final, and both teams determined to lift the trophy, it is expected to be an epic encounter.
Spicing things up, the Vodacom Bulls have scored more points than the Irishmen in the competition this season – a strength they will look to build on to claim the title that has eluded them until now.
The match will also have extra significance for players in both teams, with Willie le Roux and Francois Klopper making their 50th appearances for the Vodacom Bulls, while Leinster will look to give Luke McGrath, James Lowe, and Rieko Ioane a memorable send-off in what will mark their final matches for the province.
All this, combined with the fact that both teams will have everything to gain, will set the scene for a gripping encounter.
Teams:
Leinster: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Tommy O’Brien, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 Jamie Osborne, 11 James Lowe, 10 Sam Prendergast, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Caelan Doris (captain), 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Max Deegan, 5 James Ryan, 4 Joe McCarthy, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Rónan Kelleher, 1 Jerry Cahir. Replacements: 16 Dan Sheehan, 17 Alex Usanov, 18 Thomas Clarkson, 19 Diarmuid Mangan, 20 Jack Conan, 21 Luke McGrath, 22 Harry Byrne, 23 Garry Ringrose.
Vodacom Bulls: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 13 Canan Moodie, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Stravino Jacobs, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Embrose Papier, 8 Cameron Hanekom, 7 Elrigh Louw, 6 Marcell Coetzee (captain), 5 Ruan Nortje, 4 Ruan Vermaak, 3 Francois Klopper, 2 Johan Grobbelaar, 1 Gerhard Steenekamp. Replacements: 16 Marco van Staden, 17 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 18 Wilco Louw, 19 Cobus Wiese, 20 Jeandre Rudolph, 21 Zak Burger, 22 Stedman Gans, 23 Nizaam Carr.
Match Information: Vodacom URC Grand Final
Leinster v Vodacom Bulls
Date: Friday, 19 June
Venue: Croke Park, Dublin
SA Time: 20h30
Referee: Andrea Piardi
TV: SuperSport
Mental Prophet
The highest-paid cricketer is India’s Virat Kohli. The New Delhi native is currently captain of the national team. Chikoo earns $4 million a year but rakes in an estimated $24 million in endorsements. He receives sponsorship deals from Audi, Google, Flipkart, and Puma. He is also the sole cricketer to land on Forbes’ list of highest-paid athletes in 2020.
Troubled Pie
Rugby is also a very popular sport in South Africa and their national team, the Springboks, has performed particularly well in the international stage taking the 1995, 2007 and 2019 Rugby World Cups. There is also a fair amount of world-class Rugby players from South Africa that includes Bryan Habana, Danie Craven, Francois Pienaar, Frik du Preez, Joost van der Westhuizen, and Naas Botha. South Africa has also hosted quite a few international sports meetings like the 1996 African Cup of Nations, 2003 Cricket World Cup, as well as the 2007 World Twenty20 Championship.