It’s not often that a rugby coach dishes out compliments to a referee, but that’s exactly what Bulls boss Jake White did following their 32-22 Challenge Cup last-16 victory over Bayonne in France on Saturday.
The Bulls scored four tries at the Stade Jean Dauger to advance to Saturday’s quarter-final against Edinburgh – who beat the Lions 24-12 – in Scotland (1.30pm SA time start).
And while 31-year-old English referee Christophe Ridley handed out a yellow card to Bulls hooker Akker van der Merwe for a high tackle on Bayonne wing Xan Mousques – which looked a bit worse than it was – White had no complaints.
“Referees get criticised so much, but I tell you what I really enjoyed today: that referee reffed like a Test referee,” the former Springbok coach said.
“He wasn’t sucked into any of the things that he could’ve been sucked into. I just want to say that when you are on the side of the field, you pick up the whole vibe.
“It’s very, very difficult and intimidating for a referee to listen to all that and still be clear-minded.
“So, often as coaches, we always begrudge the referee and find ways to (talk about) when the referee makes calls or doesn’t make calls.
“But I’ve got to say, I thought today, he was outstanding. It’s the same referee who had us when we lost to Castres, but it’s not just because we’re winning.
“Exactly how he was against Castres, he was the same to us. I thought he handled those situations well – he was very clear. Yellow card for a high tackle, no yellow card when playing the guy in the air because both were contesting...
“It wasn’t a discussion: it was clear and concise.
“So, I would like to publicly just say that we were very, very happy with the way that he refereed, because he could quite easily have been sucked in with all the things in and around the fixture.”
The Bulls forwards laid the foundation with a powerful effort from the start, where Wilco Louw was a colossus in the scrums, Marcell Coetzee and JF van Heerden led the charge in the tight-loose, and Jan-Hendrik Wessels made a significant impact off the bench at loosehead prop and hooker.
The Pretoria outfit also scored some scintillating tries through Sergeal Petersen and David Kriel, and survived a late comeback from Bayonne to close out the victory.
Now White faces some difficult selection decisions for the Edinburgh quarter-final, as the Bulls then remain on tour for United Rugby Championship encounters against Munster (April 19) and Glasgow (April 25).
It's impossible to defend against this 🤩🔀
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) April 5, 2025
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“I was a little bit tense when we got that turnover at the lineout and could’ve kicked them downfield,” White said.
“Then we turned the ball over on the edge there when Stedman (Gans) held onto it on the halfway line.
“But you can’t get everything spot-on, and that will be something we talk about. When there’s three or four minutes left, there’s no need to try to be brave and hold onto the ball.
“But collectively, the way we managed it, handled the pressure, how our set-piece operated, there were a lot more positives to this fixture than negatives.
“To win here, feel the vibe, afternoon game, supporters outside can only do us well as we prepare to go into the next rounds of the two competitions.
This show and go is ruthless 😮💨😮💨
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) April 5, 2025
Another incredible try by the Vodacom Bulls 👇
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“I did it not only because I wanted a strong bench, but also based on what kind of injuries we’ve had along the season.
“A guy like Ruan Nortjé hasn’t played much rugby – last week he played 30 minutes and this week 40 minutes.
“(Johan) Goosen has been out for a long time, and he played 25 minutes today.
“It’s also about managing who’s come back, as Cameron (Hanekom) was managing an injury as well, the bang on his back.
“So, it was a little bit of mix and match, but also a way for us to manage players going into the (business end of the season).
“If we play every game, there are 10 fixtures left, and it will be a massive balancing act of how you get the best players on the field for all these games, because they now become knockout games.”