Bulls player ratings: Springboks fail to ‘fire’ upfront as Jacques Nienaber’s defence ‘suffocates’ visitors in another URC final disappointment

Following the Bulls’ 32-7 defeat to Leinster in the United Rugby Championship Grand Final, here’s how we rated Jake White’s charges in Dublin.

Bulls player ratings v Leinster

15 Willie le Roux: The mercurial veteran playmaker tried his utmost to inspire the Bulls‘ attack but simply forced matters time and time again with no luck. Too many passes were wayward -one unfortunately forward- while his cross-kicks lacked the lethal accuracy required. 4

14 Canan Moodie: Struggled to get into the match from the onset as the back was simply not getting any kind of momentum, and that continued as the game progressed. Leinster really tested him under the high ball, and while he largely held his own, it was messy. A tough old game for the youngster. 4

13 David Kriel: Had very little to say in the final in a rare quiet performance from the utility back. Defensively sharp but hardly featured in attack, and that wasn’t entirely his fault. 5

12 Harold Vorster: Conceded a needless penalty in the first half and simply didn’t feature in attack. His defence was fine, but up and he was off the pace compared to how he fared last week. 4

13 David Kriel: Had very little to say in the final in a rare quiet performance from the utility back. Defensively sharp but hardly featured in attack, and that wasn’t entirely his fault. 5

12 Harold Vorster: Conceded a needless penalty in the first half and simply didn’t feature in attack. His defence was fine, but up and he was off the pace compared to how he fared last week. 4

11 Sebastian de Klerk: One of the busiest backs as Leinster bombarded him with up-and-unders. He coughed up a few but desperately soldiered on. Just not his night. 5

10 Johan Goosen: As mentioned above, the backline stuttered and struggled to get out of first gear, and he will shoulder a lot of the blame for that. He and Le Roux just couldn’t get it going. 4

9 Embrose Papier: Started the game well but slipped off the pace as it progressed. The Jacques Nienaber-coached defence suffocated the Bulls into submission, making Papier’s life incredibly difficult. He was unable to turn the tide with his boot, too. 5

Backtracking pack

8 Marcell Coetzee: Not often that you see Coetzee backtracking with ball in hand, and while that is usually a rarity, it was common practice today. Still, he got right back to it every single time and was relentless defensively. 4

7 Ruan Nortje (c): Outsmarted at times in the lineout and wasn’t helped by some poor throwing from his hookers. Constantly tried to influence things with ball-in-hand, but the skipper had no luck. One of the leading tackler,s but ultimately it ended in disappointment. 6

6 Marco van Staden: The Springboks flanker has been used largely off the bench and rightly as he has been really impactful in that role but with Cameron Hanekom ruled out, he got the starting gig. Leinster’s accuracy in the rucks was just too good for him to influence the breakdown in his usual manner. Still had some bright moments. 6

5 JF van Heerden: The young second row grabbed a turnover and was a wilful tackler, but was part of a pack that was simply outplayed around the park. 5

4 Cobus Wiese: A concussion ended his game prematurely, which was a real shame as Wiese was one of the few forwards making inroads. Bound to earn a Test debut this year. 7

3 Wilco Louw: A see-saw battle in the scrums with Andrew Porter, who had the Springboks’ number in the early knockings before Louw came charging back. Threw his body around well around the park but couldn’t get the dominance he is usually capable of. 5

2 Johan Grobbelaar: His lineout darts weren’t to his high standards, and like Van Staden, he couldn’t pilfer over the ball at the breakdown. One of the Springboks’ forwards who simply failed to fire. 4

1 Jan-Hendrik Wessels: Much the same as his fellow prop forward. A serious talent, but wasn’t at the races in a tough game for the Bulls. 5

Replacements: The Bulls’ bench had the nigh-on impossible task of overturning a 19-point deficit in the second half against a rampant Leinster outfit in Dublin. Akker van der Merwe looked to provide that spark when he crashed over the line shortly after joining the action. However, Leinster had control of proceedings and didn’t let that slip. 5