The Bulls take on the defending champions on the back of a two-game losing streak and a torrent of tries conceded in recent matches.
The Bulls need to stop the deluge of tries scored against them when they play their first 2025 Champions Cup match against Bordeaux Bègles at Loftus on Saturday.
The teams clash in their first pool 4 match at 5.15pm, with both on a two-game losing streak in their respective leagues.
Bordeaux, however, are the defending champions of the first-tier EPCR tournament, and will carry confidence into the fixture.
Bulls’ poor record and form
The Bulls crashed out of last year’s pool stage with just one win. They beat Stade Français after first losing to Saracens, Northampton Saints and Castres.
They dropped to the second-tier Challenge Cup and beat Aviron Bayonnais 32-22 in the round of 16 but lost 34-28 to Edinburgh in the quarter-finals.
The Bulls’ defence has come into question this season. They conceded 27 tries (and 190 points in total) in six United Rugby Championship matches. Bulls president Willem Strauss even described their loss against Ulster as “arguably our worst performance since joining the URC”.
The flow of tries didn’t stop when Gauteng rivals Lions travelled to Loftus and won six tries to five last weekend. The 43-33 scoreline only looked respectable thanks to two Bulls consolation tries in the last five minutes.
The Bulls looked rusty after their month-long break. The Lions did too. But while the Lions’ knock-ons, forward passes and poor kicking improved after the first tries were scored, the Bulls’ did not.
Before that, the Bulls lost 21–12 to Glasgow in Scotland. Their three wins from six matches leave them eighth on the URC table, with a -18 points difference, lower than the next two worst teams.
Defending champions Bordeaux up against Springboks
Bordeaux similarly come from a two-game losing streak in France’s Top 14. They lost 34-33 to Pau at home and then 28-24 away to Montpellier after their two-point win over Castres.
They lie sixth in the Top 14 with six wins from 11 matches.
The Bulls have only played Bordeaux once, beating them 46-40 in a 12-try thriller in their Champions Cup group match at Loftus in January 2024.
The Pretoria union will hope their home advantage and return of some Springboks will help them shore up their defence. More so if captain Ruan Nortjé plays instead of being given a rest after the long season he had with the Springboks.
Flyhalf Handré Pollard, who would have been available against the Lions if not for a niggle, is also due to return.
The Bulls have only reached the Champions Cup play-offs in 2023/24, being thrashed by Northampton Saints in the quarter-final.
The Pretoria side will announce their team on Friday afternoon.
