Bulls in disarray as Bristol Bears run riot at Loftus in Champions Cup

The Bulls’ Champions Cup campaign hit a new low on Saturday in Pretoria, as they were torn apart by Bristol Bears in a 61-49 loss that was as alarming as it was humiliating.

On a run of six consecutive losses and desperate for a revival at Loftus Versfeld, the home side instead delivered one of their poorest displays in recent memory, leaking tries at an astonishing rate and showing little sign of cohesion, urgency or clarity to bag a rare win. They are now seven games without a win.

By halftime, Bristol had already racked up seven tries and a commanding 47–28 lead, leaving the Loftus crowd stunned in the afternoon heat.

The visitors came out firing in the hot Pretoria conditions, and the Bulls simply had no answers. Two tries were conceded in the opening six minutes, four within 15 minutes and six inside the first 25. The defensive frailties were glaring, with missed tackles, broken alignment and a lack of physical intent at the order of the day.

At times, the Bears did not even need to work particularly hard to breach the Bulls’ line. South African centre Benhard Janse van Rensburg’s opening try and the second score by prop Max Lahiff summed it up — soft shoulders, passive defence and acres of space meant an early 14-0 lead.

Bristol winger Noah Heward was particularly ruthless, completing a first-half hat-trick. His third try, scored while they were temporarily down to 14 men just before the break, felt like a dagger to the heart and underlined just how disorganised the Bulls were. The Loftus side was on the attack with an overlap, but the ball was intercepted and kicked forward for Heward to collect it and score.

That the hosts managed to score seven tries of their own masked how badly they were being outplayed.

The Bulls did at least start the second half with some intent. Centre David Kriel crossed early after some lovely running, briefly igniting hopes of a comeback as they chased a 19-point deficit. For a few phases, they looked sharper and more purposeful.

But those moments were quickly undone by poor option-taking, basic handling errors and sloppy passing, with flyhalf Handré Pollard among those struggling to impose any control. For a double World Cup winner, he was poor on the day.

Any lingering resistance from the Bulls eventually evaporated in the 56th minute when veteran Willie le Roux was yellow-carded for cynical play. With the Bulls reduced to 14 men, Bristol piled on the pressure and scored two converted tries to push their tally beyond 60 points, effectively ending the contest.

Overall, it was a terrible display from the home side, despite scoring 49 points, and one that raises serious questions. They fielded a strong side featuring 12 Springboks, yet played without structure, cohesion or a clear plan. Their only real saving grace was Bristol’s own defensive lapses and discipline issues in the game — hardly a foundation for optimism going forward.

They looked so good against the Stormers last weekend. However, Saturday’s woeful performances put them back in a deep hole from which they still need to claw their way out.

Point scorers

Bulls 49 (28): Tries: Jeandré Rudolph, Stravino Jacobs (2), Penalty Try, David Kriel, Sebastian de Klerk, Willie le Roux. Conversions: Handré Pollard (6).

Bristol Bears 61 (47): Tries: Benhard Janse van Rensburg, Max Lahiff, Noah Heward (3), Kalaveti Ravouvou (2), Kieran Marmion, Pedro Rubiolo. Conversions: Tom Jordan (8).