URC result: Bulls sweep aside Dragons for Cornal Hendricks

The Bulls secured a thumping 55–15 win over the Dragons in their United Rugby Championship match at Loftus on Saturday, which also served as a tribute to the late Cornal Hendricks.

Bulls director of rugby Jake White said before kick-off it would be an emotional game as the Bulls paid homage to their formal player, who passed away following a heart attack on Wednesday. They did this by flying flags at half-mast, holding a minute’s silence, applauding in the 14th minute (Hendricks’ shirt number) and allowing fans to leave flowers and notes at the iconic Loftus bull statue.

The Dragons will have to settle with just one win in 18 games this season, which came against Ospreys eight months ago, in September.

Needing just a losing bonus point to secure second place on the URC log – should Glasgow earn a full five points against Leinster later in the day – the Bulls left nothing to chance. They even said they were aiming for a whitewash against the Welsh side.

They looked like they might do it, dominating set-pieces and the break down especially, and finding gaps at will on the day. But the Dragons upped the ante in the second half to score three tries to the Bulls’ nine.

Bulls dominate Dragons

The Bulls got off to a flyer thanks to a great team try on the sideline, dotted down by David Kriel in the fifth minute, and then an individual try from Cobus Wiese under the posts three minutes later.

The Bulls scored twice more in the second quarter: Sebastian through an overlap and Akker van der Merwe from a rolling maul. That gave them a 26–0 lead at half-time.

Dragons finally put points on the scoreboard with an overlap try by Huw Anderson in the 44th minute. They followed it up with a try from a kick-and-chase three minutes later, Rhodri Williams collecting and scoring.

However, the Bulls hit back with four unanswered tries in the next 15 minutes.

Van der Merwe crossed for his second after slicing through a gap in the Dragons’ defence, before Sergeal Petersen dotted down twice in quick succession. Marcell Coetzee then capped off a sweeping team move to complete the blitz.

The Bulls went into the final 15 minutes with a 50–10 lead. They added a try from Devon Williams through an overlap to compound the thrashing, while Dragons added their own from Lewis Morgan.

Scorers

Bulls: Tries – David Kriel, Cobus Wiese, Sebastian de Klerk, Akker van der Merwe (2), Sergeal Petersen (2), Marcell Coetzee, Devon Williams. Conversions – Keagan Johannes 5/9.

Dragons: Tries – Huw Anderson, Rhodri Williams, Lewis Morgan. Conversions – Angus O’Brien 0/2, Lloyd Evans 0/1.