Steyn kicks Bulls into final
The Bulls scored three first-half tries and Morne Steyn kicked 21 points as the South Africans booked their place in the Super 14 final.
Last Updated: 23/05/09 4:45pm
The Bulls scored three first-half tries and Morne Steyn kicked 21 points as the South Africans knocked defending champions Crusaders out of the Super 14 with a 36-23 semi-final victory on Saturday.
The hosts found themselves 20-7 behind after half an hour but rallied strongly to lead going into the break before Steyn booted them into a clear advantage with a penalty and two drop goals in five second-half minutes.
Bryan Habana zipped through the middle to open the scoring on 12 minutes but Crusaders hit back strongly, Adam Whitelock and Kieran Read scoring converted tries before Akona Ndungane and Pierre Spies replied in the final 10 minutes of a pulsating opening 40 minutes.
Steyn added two drop goals to send his side in 27-20 to the good and although Andrew Ellis narrowed the deficit six minutes into the second-half with a drop of his own, Steyn's burst inside the final 15 minutes finished off the New Zealanders.
Early signs
Stephen Brett got the scoreboard ticking when Gurthrö Steenkamp was nailed for illegal scumming. The Bulls were going backwards at scrum-time and all the early signs were pointing in the 'Saders direction.
But the Bulls didn't finish top of the Super 14 table by the grace of Steyn and Fourie du Preez's boots alone. The tight five answered the call with some solid build-up play.
With the Crusaders defence stretched, Habana added to his reputation as the world's most dangerous player when he found a gap next to a ruck and turned on the gas to put the Bulls in front.
The Crusaders' reply was almost immediate. Their attacking was clinical and some fast hands from Ryan Crotty and Tim Bateman put Whitelock into the corner. The TMO gave the thumbs up before Leon MacDonald slotted a pearl of a conversion.
MacDonald extended the lead from the kicking tee when a debatable off-side call went against the Bulls.
The capacity Loftus Versfeld crowd fell silent when the Crusaders opened the gap to 13 points. Brett's high kick put Ndungane under pressure and Read's weight and momentum won him the aerial catching contest, the flanker stretching out an arm to touch down.
Huge comeback
With the first quarter possession stats showing 67 per cent for the Crusaders, the Bulls needed to keep ball in hand and they did just that.
Some fantastic build up play sparked a huge comeback, starting with a try out wide for Ndungane, who was put away by Zane Kirchner. Steyn's conversion from the touchline equalled MacDonald's earlier effort.
The Bulls were applying the pressure. Waldrom was sent to the bin for intentionally knocking the ball down, prompting Victor Matfield to gamble by opting to push for a try but when his plan backfired, Steyn had the presence of mind to slot a drop goal.
Steyn audaciously popped a second drop over before Spies capped an manic period of play with a 50m sprint, outpacing Crotty to score a telling try on the counter.
As so often is the case in play-off matches, the second half saw a tightly fought, tense affair.
The Crusaders were first to strike after the break when Ellis bisected the uprights with a cheeky drop goal to reduce the gap to three. It took 20 minutes for the Bulls to reply, and it was Steyn who slotted a penalty and then his third drop with 12 minutes to play.
Already 10 points up, Steyn then struck another nail into the 'Saders coffin with his fourth drop goal - this time from nearly 50m out.
Cue the Bulls forwards to hang onto the ball like a mother hanging onto her baby in a hurricane. With the men in red unable to get anywhere near the ball, the game was done and dusted.
