The Bulls will welcome competition leaders, the Glasgow Warriors, for a highly-anticipated top of the table showdown that could potentially alter the URC’s top four.
PLAYOFF PERMUTATIONS AND MATCH PREVIEW
It would be tempting to suggest that the plum fixture and most important one this coming weekend is the early Saturday afternoon shoot-out in Pretoria between the Bulls and the Glasgow Warriors. It pits the first-placed team against the fourth.
The Bulls have an inside lane for a top-four finish as they are currently in fourth place on the standings with 51 points – six ahead of the fifth-placed Stormers – and they will certainly want to make the most of their home ground advantage against log-leaders, Glasgow, who hold a seven-point lead over them on the table.
The hosts will be bracing themselves for a gruelling encounter against the Warriors, but they will draw inspiration from the fact they have only suffered one defeat at home this season. A victory would not only bolster their chances of hosting a quarter-final, but it would also keep them in the race for a top spot, which is still entirely possible.
The visitors have to win to stay ahead of Leinster and Munster in the race for top spot on the final log.
The Pretoria side have been superior on attack this season, but they will go up against the best defensive team in the URC, which sets the scene for a thrilling encounter.
The bottom line is that there is a lot on the line for the Bulls, not least because defeat will leave them vulnerable to the chasing Stormers in the race for four spots. Or for that matter, a clutch of other teams – the Stormers are six behind the Bulls, but Connacht, Ulster, and Benetton are tied together just one point further back.
Spit the dummy now and the Bulls, who finish off their campaign with a potentially tricky trip to Durban to play the resurgent Sharks, could find themselves not in the top four, but sixth or seventh.
MATCH DETAILS: BULLS V GLASGOW WARRIORS
Date: Saturday, 11 May
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Referee: Ben Whitehouse
SA Time: 14h00
TV: SuperSport