Sibongile Novuka’s hat-trick of tries helped the Vodacom Bulls to a 24-20 bonus point victory over the Cell C Sharks in a crucial round 6 Currie Cup win at the Hollywoodbets Kings Park Stadium, in Durban.
The Vodacom Bulls looking to turn things around after a slow start in the 2023 Currie Cup campaign, defended with valour and grit to hold out a determined Sharks side who were looking to have the final say in a tightly contested bout in Durban. In the end, Jake White’s men did enough to register their first win at the coast, since 2015.
Novuka opened the men in blue’s account as early as the 14th minute. With veteran, Morne Steyn marshalling the troops in the heart of the field, the herd grew in confidence throughout the opening half, going into the break with a 19-3 lead, away from home.
Upon returning from the break, the hosts looked to change their fortunes, closing the gap down to only six points but it was Novuka’s brilliance that saw the visiting Vodacom Bulls open some distance again between them and their hosts, showing some hunger and desire for a victory that would cement their turning of the corner.
In the end, White’s troops would walk away with a bonus point victory for the four tries scored, moving to 13 points on the log, six behind their hosts in third place and three points from fourth place as the season begins to take some much needed momentum.
Vodacom Bulls Scorers:
Tries: Sibongile Novuka x3, Jan-Hendrik Wessels
Conversion: Morne Steyn x2
VODACOM BULLS vs CELL C SHARKS STARTING XV: 1. Simphiwe Matanzima, 2. Jan Hendrik Wessels, 3. Sebastian Lombard, 4. Jacques Du Plessis, 5. Janko Swanepoel, 6. Cameron Hanekom, 7. Reinhardt Ludwig, 8. Nizaam Carr (c), 9. Zak Burger, 10. Morne Steyn, 11. Wandisile Simelane, 12. Chris Barend Smit, 13. Lionel Mapoe, 14. Sibongile Novuka, 15. Franco Knoetze
VODACOM BULLS IMPACT SQUAD: 16. Jacques van Rooyen, 17. Tiaan Lange, 18. Robert Hunt, 19. Phumzile Maqondwana, 20. WJ Steenkamp, 21. Bernard van der Linde, 22. Cornal Hendricks, 23. Kabelo Mokoena
MANAGEMENT: Jake White – Director of Rugby, Sean Everitt – Defence & Breakdown, Hugo van As – Backline, Gert Smal – Forwards, Justin Kruger – Technical Analyst, Dr. Gerhard Louwrence – Team Doctor, Mike Prevoo – Strength & Conditioning, Yusuf Vahed – Sports Scientist, Darryn Berry – Physiotherapist, Claudette Eckard – Physiotherapist, Andries Kabine – Logistics Manager, Elias Bennett – Team Manager
