The Vodacom Blue Bulls have done it on numerous occasions in 2009 and they did it again on Saturday at Newland when they managed to grind out the win in the last couple of minutes.
It is as if this group of players enjoys playing under enormous pressure and what is more – they have the ability to lift their game whenever the situation demands it. We will now take a quick look at what Frans Ludeke’s assistants said about the 21-19 victory:

COACHES CORNER
“We did really well.

John McFarland (defence coach):

“When the pressure is on and the odds are against us, these guys are able to come through and win the game. I am really proud of the team.”

 
Vlok Cilliers (kicking coach):
“If there is one guy in the world that is able to land a last minute kick, it is Morné Steyn.
‘He has shown against the British Lions as well as in the Tri-Nations that he is a match winner and his form and confidence is unbelievable.

“On the whole it was a massive game and it was great to see how the team kept its composure. We knew before kick-off that a win will secure a home final and it was just marvelous to see how the guys delivered the goods under enormous pressure.

“From a tactical kicking perspective I would say that our kicking was better in the first half than in the second. We played really well in the beginning and with our kicking we managed to turn them.”

 
Pieter Rossouw (backline coach):
“WP defended really well and as a result of that there weren’t a lot of opportunities.
“There weren’t any try scoring opportunities from first phases and although we had one or two line-breaks we could not finish it off.

“I think we were brilliant in the first 20 minutes and we did well to put them under pressure, but they started to play better as the game progressed.”

 
Wynie Strydom (manager):
“The team showed tremendous character to pull this one off and I thought Morné was brilliant with the last kick.
“We accomplished what we wanted to accomplish and we are just glad that the Cheetahs did their part to ensure a home final at Loftus.

“To play at Loftus in a final is a big bonus and there is currently an unbelievable vibe in Pretoria and therefore I would like to sincerely thank all our fans for their wonderful support throughout the season.” 

AWARDS:

After every match the Vodacom Bulls hand out six awards for players who did extremely well in different areas of the game. 

Bison (most cleans):
Werner Kruger – 30 in 80 minutes. 

Sniper (most tackles):
Deon Stegmann – 15 in 71 minutes. 

Hit-man (Biggest tackle):
Zane Kirchner on Duane Vermeulen! 

Ant (best back):
Morne Steyn 

Workhorse (highest work rate):
Pierre Spies 

Bumble bee (manager’s award):
Morne Steyn.