SA URC Team of the Week – Semi-finals

Jake White’s men overcame three yellow cards and outscored their Springbok-laden visitors by three tries to two to punch their ticket to a second successive grand final.

The decider will be staged in Dublin after Leinster lashed the defending champion Glasgow Warriors 37-19 in the first of Saturday’s semi-finals.

Our Team of the Week is split into a dozen Bulls and three Sharks.

15: Aphelele Fassi (Sharks)

With Willie le Roux being error-prone, with a knock-on, forward pass and kick out on the full among his mistakes, Fassi got the nod. The Sharks fullback’s best touch was his marvellous 50:22 that gave the visitors a late attacking opportunity.

14: Ethan Hooker (Sharks)

After having an early intercept try disallowed, the Springbok-in-waiting provided a cool finish in the second half to get the Sharks back in the game. Broke tackles, made post-contact metres when he was wrapped up and was great in the air.

13: David Kriel (Bulls)

This head-to-head battle felt like a passing of the torch with Kriel having a cracker, including producing a clutch breakdown penalty on his 5m line in the 38th minute and scoring a try, and Lukhanyo Am having a mare.

12: Andre Esterhuizen (Sharks)

A physical force who dropped shoulder and smashed over the advantage line, making a match-high nine successful carries. Not just a sledgehammer as he made slick offloads in the tackle and a good long pass to put Am into space.

11: Sebastian de Klerk (Bulls) – Player of the Week

It wasn’t one of the big names but the often-overlooked De Klerk who stole the show, starting with a great run from the kick off. Easily beat Am to score the opening try, great awareness and execution to put Canan Moodie in with a crosskick, smashed Makazole Mapimpi and made a try-saving tackle on Am to claim the Man of the Match award.  

10: Johan Goosen (Bulls)

His experience was vital for the Bulls and extended to him serving as acting captain when they were down to 13 men, whereas Jordan Hendrikse forgot his kicking boots in Durban, missing three shots at goal.

9: Embrose Papier (Bulls)

A statement performance by the forgotten Springbok. Carved out a try for De Klerk with a good break and pass and sparked Kriel’s try with a tremendous offload.

8: Marco van Staden (Bulls)

A real shame about Cameron Hanekom’s injury, but Van Staden was fantastic off the bench. Maximised his minutes and outshone Siya Kolisi, his most notable contribution being the vital penalty he won on the deck in his 22 in the 64th minute.

7: Ruan Nortje (Bulls)

A courageous and all-action outing by the Bulls captain. He’s been as good in the back row as he was at lock and finished with the second-most number of tackles (17) despite having spent some time in the blood bin.

6: Marcell Coetzee (Bulls)

Even with the yellow card he conceded for sacking a maul, Coetzee thoroughly outworked James Venter, making double the number of tackles than his direct opponent with 16.

5: JF van Heerden (Bulls)

The young gun was undaunted by the occasion of his first big semi-final. A tower of strength in the lineout and smoked Vincent Tshituka with a huge hit.

4: Cobus Wiese (Bulls)

Showed his power, pace and skills in a massive performance. Uber-physical, made a match-high 19 tackles and delivered a try assist for Kriel.

3: Wilco Louw (Bulls)

Not even the mighty Ox Nche could stand up to the irresistible force that is Louw at scrum time. He led the charge in forcing a heel against the head and winning a scrum penalty.

2: Johan Grobbelaar (Bulls)

Like Papier, “Grobbies” sent a message to Rassie Erasmus by outplaying Bongi Mbonambi after being omitted from the 54-man Springbok squad.

1: Jan-Hendrik Wessels (Bulls)

While Nche had good moments, like the basketball-like pass in the lead-up to Mapimpi’s try, Wessels delivered a more complete outing. Dominant in the scrum and busy in general play.