There were many positives for coach Jake White to take from the Bulls' thumping 45-9 win over Cardiff at Loftus on Saturday, but one of the most pleasing was the performance of flyhalf Johan Goosen.
A player who has endured a nightmarish run of injuries is now back in the Bulls No 10 jumper, and he showed on Saturday why he has been accompanied by so much expectation for such a long time.
Even when injured, Goosen has remained on the radar of Springbok bosses Rassie Erasmus and Jacques Nienaber, and this performance was a statement.READ | Bulls open missing persons case as concern grows over Bok star Sbu NkosiGoosen scored a try and kicked 11 points on the night, but his running of the game was even more impressive as he distributed with precision, putting himself and players around him into gaps, and was largely flawless kicking out of hand.
It was a complete flyhalf showing, and while White was naturally pleased with the efforts of Kurt-Lee Arendse and Canan Moodie on the night, too, there was a noticeable satisfaction in his voice when addressing Goosen at his post-match press conference. "In the beginning, we couldn't get rhythm, and we got a lot of slow ball.