The Vodacom Bulls will be chasing a first Vodacom United Rugby Championship win over the Stormers when the north-south derby returns to Pretoria on Saturday.
Defending champions the Stormers have won all four of the previous Vodacom URC clashes between these two sides, including last season’s grand final.
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However, the Bulls will be playing the derby on home ground for the first time since January 2022 and have been boosted by the return of Jake White and wing Sbu Nkosi.
The two teams are in the top four, but are separated by 10 points on the table, with the Stormers sitting in second place. Take a look back at all four north-south derbies, three of which were decided by five points or less:
WIN: Tickets to Bulls vs Stormers clash
1: Bulls 26 Stormers 30, Loftus Versfeld, 22 January 2022
The Stormers went into the inaugural URC north-south derby searching for their first win at Loftus Verfeld since 2017. However, an electric start to the match saw the visitors open up an 18-0 lead thanks to Seabelo Senatla’s brace. The Bulls struck just before the break through Johan Grobbelaar and took this momentum into the second half, as tries from Madosh Tambwe, Embrose Papier and Elrigh Louw put the hosts ahead. The Stormers started a fightback when Warrick Gelant came off the bench and set up Herschel Jantjies for a try to put the Cape side three points behind. A rare ‘blackout’ saw SuperSport lose coverage of the closing stages, when Gelant put Paul de Wet over for the winning score.
Herschel Jantjies scoring a crucial try for the Stormers. @Vodacom #URC pic.twitter.com/qs5PBeRnsD
— SA Rugby magazine (@SARugbymag) January 22, 2022
Few people got to see the last try of last night’s match against the Bulls (due to technical difficulties)
Great effort from the boys! ?⛈?@THESTORMERS @DHLAfrica pic.twitter.com/ObZlbcn9s5
— Warrick Gelant (@WarrickGelant) January 23, 2022
2: Stormers 19 Vodacom Bulls 17, Cape Town Stadium, 9 April 2022
The second URC north-south derby had a controversial edge to it as the Stormers held on for a 19-17 victory in Cape Town. Manie Libbok slotted four penalties and Hacjivah Dayimani scored a crucial try before half time. The Bulls struck back through Canan Moodie’s second-half try. With the Stormers leading 19-10 in the final 10 minutes, Ruan Nortje had a try controversially chalked off, but Dayimani was yellow-carded for a high tackle in the build-up. Still, the visitors made it a tense finish when Elrigh Louw powered over the tryline, but the Stormers managed to see the game out and claim a second successive win.
3: Stormers 18 Vodacom Bulls 13, Cape Town Stadium, 18 June 2022
An all-South African grand final saw the Stormers host the Bulls, who had beaten Leinster in the semi-finals in Dublin. The Bulls made a fantastic start through Harold Vorster’s try and dominated most of the first half, but had to settle for a four-point lead after Manie Libbok converted a penalty on the stroke of half time. Second-half tries from Evan Roos and substitute hooker Andre-Hugo Venter turned the game in the Stormers’ favour and Libbok hit a drop-goal to give the hosts enough of a buffer to clinch the win and the title.
4: Stormers 37 Vodacom Bulls 27, Cape Town Stadium, 23 December 2022
The most recent north-south derby saw the Stormers race into an early 13-3 lead after being awarded a penalty try, which saw Elrigh Louw sent to the sin bin. While the Bulls were able to level the scores at 13-13, the second half belonged to the Stormers. Tries from Joseph Dweba, Suleiman Hartzenberg and Leolin Zas secured a bonus point and put the home side into an unassailable lead, despite late scores from Marco van Staden and Bismarck du Plessis.
Photo: Shaun Roy/BackpagePix