“I feel sorry for the players because things just don’t seem to want to turn for us”.
Vodacom Bulls coach Johan Ackermann says the bounce of the ball and the 50-50 calls went against his side in a 13-8 defeat to the Stormers in Cape Town.
The Bulls suffered a sixth consecutive loss across competitions despite pushing the unbeaten Stormers all the way in a Vodacom URC north-south derby that was decided by a 79th-minute lineout-maul try from replacement prop Ntuthuko Mchunu.
Bulls flyhalf Handre Pollard levelled the scores early in the second half but missed two further shots at goal, while the Stormers were more clinical late on.
“It’s obviously disappointing at the moment. We’re all emotional and it hurts to lose like this,” Ackermann said.
‘I feel sorry for the players’
“I feel sorry for the players because things just don’t seem to want to turn for us. Even when we win a high ball, the bounce doesn’t go our way. It feels like every little kick goes against us and you don’t get the 50-50 calls [from referee Griffin Colby] either. It’s a tough place to be.”
Ackermann said the loss was down to fine margins rather than a lack of effort.
“I really wanted the players to put their hands up and they did,” he said. “It wasn’t a fluent game. There were mistakes from both sides and it boiled down to one or two big decisions. Credit to the Stormers – they finished well.”
The Bulls came close to stopping the decisive late maul.
“I wanted the boys to contest,” Ackermann explained. “We could have stayed on the floor and tried to defend the maul, but we went up and contested. We won it and it was millimetres – Ruan [Nortje] just missed the ball. Hopefully soon it turns for us.”
Ackermann also pointed to the windy conditions, which complicated the aerial battle, though he stressed they were not an excuse.
“The wind definitely made the aerial contest difficult,” he said. “The ball looks like it’s going far and then suddenly drops short. It’s tough for both sides. But that’s not the reason we lost – that was in our hands.”
Despite the result, the Bulls coach believes there were positives.
“For large parts of the game we were good and created opportunities. When Sebastian [de Klerk] won that ball at the end, on another day the pass sticks and we score in the corner.
“Those mistakes are fixable, and that’s why I believe we can turn the season around.”
The Bulls now shift focus back to the Investec Champions Cup, where Ackermann says there will be no holding back in matches against Bristol at Loftus next Saturday and Pau in France on 16 January.
“We’re going full out with the strongest possible team for the next two games,” he said. “If we lose, we’re out. If we win, we’re in [the playoffs] – it’s simple.
“This next block is about getting everyone on the same page, building cohesion and turning our season around.”
This story was first published on sarugbymag.co.za. It is republished here with permission.
