White has mixed emotions as some gloss taken off good Bulls win

The Bulls played some of their most compelling rugby of the season in their 40-34 victory over Glasgow Warriors but the two bonus points the table-topping Scottish team departed Loftus with left the home team's director of rugby with mixed emotions.

Log supremacy in the United Rugby Championship is a tightly contested affair and the Bulls would have felt well pleased with their effort until Franco Smith's team showed why they are the pacesetters with three tries in eight minutes to get within six points after trailing 37-10.

The weekend's results has left the top five teams in the same position, though the chasing pack have made up ground on the Warriors. With two league rounds to go they lead Leinster by one point, Munster by two and the Bulls by four. The Stormers are fifth, six points off the Bulls.

“I'm happy and sad, I know its weird. I told them in the change room,” said Bulls director of rugby Jake White. “I thought for the first 60 minutes we were outstanding. I thought that was the best rugby we've played in a long time. Defensively we had their number.”

White however then saw his team lacking the wherewithal that the final quarter demanded. They stuck to the script instead of adjusting to what the match required.

“I just thought we got naive at the end when we kicked contestables when we had the game won,” said White. “That kept them in the game because we weren't kicking it out for a line-out because that takes up time. We started giving them the ball on the halfway line and that is what they wanted. The intercept too, we didn't need to play there,” White said about the try visiting left-wing Sebastian Cancelliere scored from the halfway line.

White lamented the lack of clear, coherent leadership when the Bulls were supposed to tighten the screws. “I hate myself for saying this but we could have been more conservative at the back end of the game. It is one of those challenges that you have because we are such a good attacking team. It's a really good example of when we've got to have leadership on the field that call what we are trying to execute,” said White.

On that score, the former Bok coach said he had challenged the leadership corps. “I said let's meet on Monday and go through scenarios where we are in the same situation in big games. We need a game plan where everyone is on board. There is no right and wrong. I just want the players to be on the same page.”

In the end though White was pleased to bag five log points. “We would have taken five points against the team that is top of the table.”

Smith too had bitter, sweet emotions after the game. “It is difficult to use the word 'happy'. The plan wasn't to fall behind the way we did,” said Smith about their poor first half in particular.

The Warriors had planned to finish the game strong and that intent was reflected on their bench with some of the front row cavalry arriving after just half an hour. While they did finish chest-out as they intended the damage they suffered in the first 30 minutes was near irreparable. Smith lamented the 95 tackles his team as forced to make in the first half.

The former Bok midfielder though was happy with the character his team showed at one of the most challenging places in the game to visit. “To play the Bulls you are challenged mentally and physically. We had to catch up and our character was tested and we passed that test. I'm utterly gutted that we lost because we were good enough to win.

“Winning is important but we have other objectives as well,” said Smith about the team's growth and the brand of rugby he wants them to play.