Bulls survive second-half scare to beat Ulster at Loftus Versfeld

The Bulls made a blistering start in Pretoria, using their powerful maul to send captain Marcell Coetzee over for the opening try inside two minutes. Handre Pollard added the conversion to give the hosts a 7-0 lead.

The home side continued to apply pressure and doubled their advantage in the 18th minute when Elrigh Louw powered over the line.

Coetzee then crossed for his second try of the afternoon in the 32nd minute after Pollard had exposed space in the Ulster defence with a well-judged 50-22 kick. 

But Ulster finally found a breakthrough in first-half stoppage time when Chay Mullins raced over for a well-worked try to make it 21-7 at the break.

The visitors carried that momentum into the second half and struck again in the 45th minute, with David McCann crossing to bring them within seven points.

The Bulls' task became more difficult when Coetzee was sent to the sin bin in the 47th minute for a high tackle, but Pollard landed a penalty shortly after to give them a little more breathing room.

Ulster's continued pressure paid off in the 63rd minute when Mullins completed a well-worked move for his second try of the match.

The Bulls responded emphatically three minutes later as hooker Johan Grobbelaar powered over the line to restore some breathing room.

Ulster refused to surrender and pulled closer again in the 70th minute when Stuart McCloskey crossed for their fourth try. Jack Murphy added the extras to make it 31-26, setting up a tense finish at Loftus.

However, the Bulls held their nerve in the closing stages, winning a crucial scrum penalty after driving Ulster backwards on their own feed.

Another late penalty in injury time allowed replacement flyhalf Curwin Bosch to have the final say, ensuring the Pretoria side collected all five points after weathering Ulster's second-half onslaught.

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