URC roundup: Bulls, Stormers, Sharks sitting pretty, Lions have catching up to do

Three SA teams are looking good, but the Lions will want to hit back on home soil. Most of the big guns are up there, along with a few surprise newcomers, as the United Rugby Championship (URC) breaks for November for the Nations Championship to resume in Europe over the coming month. After five rounds of URC action in the new season, former champions, Glasgow Warriors, sit top of the pile with 23 points, followed by the Bulls (20) and Stormers (20). In fourth are the Sharks, with 19 points, with Edinburgh (19), Leinster (18), Cardiff (13) and Dragons (13, rounding out the top eight. The Lions are 13th with nine points. Ivan van Rooyen’s charges endured a difficult three weeks in Europe, facing La Rochelle in the Champions Cup, and Edinburgh and Glasgow in the URC, all losses coming in the days after the tragic passing of team-mate Hyron Andrews. “It was an incredibly difficult tour in the bigger scheme of things,” said Van Rooyen after his side’s 29-20 defeat to Glasgow on Friday night. “The character we showed during the La Rochelle and Glasgow games is something we are proud of. “Throughout the three weeks the management was truly unbelievable. We are truly blessed to have incredible people in our team. The heart and character to stand up and fight for each other was incredible.” The Lions will next face the Bulls, at home, on 5 December. Johan Ackermann’s Bulls were made to work extremely hard for their 54-26 win against Scarlets at Loftus on Saturday, with the coach saying his team “showed character” to end strongly after the sides were locked at 26-all after 55 minutes. “There’s no easy game, and if you can win and get five points out of it, you must be happy,” said Ackermann, whose team have won four out of five matches so far. Stormers boss John Dobson, whose side are also four from five, was also pleased with his team’s 33-7 victory against Ulster, who’re yet to win in the competition, but lamented the poor handling at times in the first half especially. “We were on 14 knock-ons at half-time, which is just a staggering statistic,” Dobson told reporters. “To give them 11 scrum feeds by half-time is a lot.” The Sharks, who’ll next be in action against the Stormers in early December, are the “big movers” in the early stages of the URC. They return from their three-match trip to Europe (one Challenge Cup match and two URC games) with three wins in the bag, after not winning a game in Europe last season. After not conceding a try in Saturday’s 15-3 win against Munster in Limerick, coach JP Pietersen said: “It shows what the boys have been building in the environment where we as players care for each other. It’s beautiful to see how we fight for each other.” For all the results, fixtures and points table click here.