Bulls granted playoff wish after Sharks fluff their lines: 'Always nice to play the Stormers'

Bulls assistant coach Chris Rossouw wanted to play the Stormers in the United Rugby Championship quarter-finals and got his wish after the Sharks' 22-22 draw against Munster in Durban.

The result at Kings Park set up the third, and most critical, north-south derby of the season.

The Bulls finished their regular season with a 62-7 record thrashing of a second-string Leinster side at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday, a result that came on the back of a 78-12 manhandling of Zebre at Ellis Park the previous week.

At the time of the Bulls' post-match press conference, the Sharks/Munster game was still ongoing and hadn't swung in the manner that set up the mouth-watering quarter-final. The Sharks led 22-3 early in the second half but couldn't stop a Munster fightback.

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Rossouw said they were happy with the momentum gained in the lead-up to the playoffs, even though they had a mid-season struggle where they didn't win a URC game between 6 January and last week.

"It's always nice to play the Stormers and it will be nice to play them because we'll be staying in South Africa," Rossouw said.

"Going back to Cape Town will be nice. We've built some momentum over time and now we've got the big ones.

"Momentum is very important for the morale and the confidence of the team. It's also important for the cohesion, so the momentum comes at the right time."

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In scoring nine tries in an unexpected romp at 416 Kirkness Street, the Bulls showed a vicious side to their play that's been missing this season.

Rossouw was quick to admit that they played an under-strength Leinster