URC halfway wrap: Bulls, Stormers sitting pretty

With the United Rugby Championship on a two-week break and the competition at the halfway mark it is perhaps the perfect time to recap what has gone down so far and where the South African teams stand in their quest to make the playoffs.

All 16 teams have played nine games, with the top eight going through to the knockout rounds after the round-robin stage.

Right now, thanks to the thrilling win against the Lions at Loftus on Saturday, the Bulls lead the way among the four South African teams.

Bulls

Jake White and his men are fourth in the standings, having won six matches and lost three. At the same stage last season they were second on the points table, and ended up finishing sixth overall.

This season the Bulls have beaten Scarlets, Zebre, Cardiff, Connacht, Sharks and Lions and lost to Ulster, Edinburgh and the Stormers.

Not far behind the Bulls are the winners from the first season and runners-up last term, the Stormers.

Stormers

They’re seventh at the moment after a slow start, having won five matches and lost four.

The Stormers have picked up wins against the Lions, Scarlets, Zebre, Bulls and Sharks and lost to Glasgow, Benetton, Munster and Cardiff.

John Dobson’s team were third at the same stage last year, having played eight games. They also finished third after their 16 games.

Lions

Further down the log are the Lions, who’re 10th with four wins and five defeats, though they have picked up bonus points in all those narrow losses.

Ivan van Rooyen’s team have won against the Scarlets, Zebre, Dragons and Sharks and lost to the Stormers, Edinburgh, Benetton, Ulster and Bulls.

The Lions were fifth at the halfway mark a season ago, but they’d also only played eight games. They ended up finishing ninth.

Sharks

And right at the bottom of the pile and propping up the table are the Sharks, who’ve surprisingly won only one match and lost eight so far. A year ago the Sharks were 10th, having played two games less, and they ended their campaign in eighth place.

John Plumtree’s team’s only win was against the Dragons in round six, with the defeats coming against Munster, Leinster, Ospreys, Zebre, Connacht, Bulls, Lions and Stormers.

Leading the way

Sitting at the top of the log are Irish side Leinster, once again, and they’re followed by, somewhat surprisingly, Benetton from Italy and Glasgow from Scotland.

The next round of matches is on 16/17 February and locally there will be two derbies to keep rugby fans excited.

The Lions and Bulls will clash at Ellis Park (3pm on the Saturday) while the Sharks will host the Stormers at 5.05pm (also on the Saturday).

For all the results so far and matches to come click here.