Bulls' Elrigh Louw (R) is tackled by Toulouse's French full back Matthis Lebel (L) during the European Rugby Champions Cup round of 16 rugby union match between Stade Toulousain Rugby (Toulouse) and Bulls (Pretoria) at stadium TFC in Toulouse, southwestern France Bulls loose forward Elrigh Louw believes there is no cause for concern despite letting slip their grip on their previous United Rugby Championship encounter over the weekend. Photo: Charly Triballeau/AFP
Despite letting a comfortable lead slip against the table-topping Glasgow Warriors last week in the United Rugby Championship (URC), Bulls loose forward Elrigh Louw believes there is no cause for concern.
The Bulls had built a 37-10 lead, but Glasgow fought back admirably to close the gap before the Bulls held on for a 40-34 victory at Loftus Versfeld.
On Saturday, the Bulls welcome Benetton in Pretoria, but do not plan on losing their grip on a URC encounter, albeit temporarily, again.
“It was our goal to get five points, and we got it right. Unfortunately, we allowed them to get those extra bonus points, which sees them above us on the log,” said Louw.
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With just two matches remaining before the play-offs, the top four teams have already secured their safe passage.
As one of those teams, the Bulls could afford to take their foot off the pedal in their final group games but that will not be the case.
“We are positive and learnt a few lessons, and it’s good to be able to learn lessons and still win games ... We went away from our plan a bit at the end of the match, but I thought we delivered a very good performance.
“I don’t think there’s a lot to change. We had an awesome attitude throughout the week and the game.
“There were just little things that crept in during the last few minutes – penalties, soft moments on defence ... But not a lot to change.”
As for the challenge of Benetton, who are eighth and in the final play-off spot, it will require another top performance from the Bulls if they are to be victorious.
“I think they are a quality team with a lot of internationals, and if you look at how Italy’s rugby is going at the moment, they are definitely a force to be reckoned with and not to take lightly,” the blindside flank said.
“You shouldn’t look at teams differently, and we prepare like we always would. But it (the 2021 final) still hurts, and the guys are sour and probably will always be sour over that loss in Italy.”