Dragons set URC record low after losing to nine-try Bulls

South Wales Argus

17-05-2025

The Rodney Parade club finished a horrendous United Rugby Championship campaign with a very predictable 55-15 defeat to the Bulls in Pretoria.
Their position at the bottom of the table had long been cemented but they failed to earn a bonus that means they share the joint worst tally of nine points with Zebre from 2021/22.
A small consolation is that the Italians had a points difference of -369 to their -302.
The Bulls head into the play-offs as second seeds after a nine-try destruction of the Dragons, who had a 22-man absentee list and just had no answer to their power.
Filo Tiatia's men did end the game hunting a bonus after second-half tries by wing Huw Anderson, a cracker by scrum-half Rhodri Williams and a driving lineout score for hooker Lewis Morgan, who was playing on permit from Carmarthen Quins.
They did go over a fourth time only for a forward pass to deny wing Ashton Hewitt a farewell score.
ATTACK: Angus O'Brien looks for a way through for the Dragons at the Bulls (Image: Gordon Arons/Huw Evans Agency)
It was inevitable that the Dragons would go down to a 17th straight defeat to end what has been a miserable season, it was just about how much resistance they could show.
How long could they make the Bulls wait for their four-try bonus? Could they cross four times themselves to at least sign off with a consolation point?
Answers: the 40th minute and nope (just).
The Bulls stretched the Dragons from the off with a more expansive approach than the Stormers had adopted seven days earlier and it took a strong last-man tackle by full-back Angus O'Brien to deny number eight Cameron Hanekom in the corner after three minutes.
However, the first try came in the fifth minute on the other flank when centre David Kriel finished off after neat handling set wing Sebastian de Klerk free.
The second came in the eighth minute after a penalty was kicked to the 22 and a couple of hard carries were followed by lock Cobus Wiese cantering over after the defence was exposed on the fold, Keagan Johannes converting for 12-0.
The Dragons then suffered yet another huge blow in the 17th minute when loosehead Dylan Kelleher-Griffiths – himself a novice who had been thrown in at the deep end, and done pretty well, due to injuries - was forced off with a wrist problem.
That led to the very early introduction of Jamie Hughes, a prop brought in on permit after playing in Llandovery's Super Rygbi Cymru semi-final loss at Ebbw Vale seven days earlier.
It was, as expected, one-way traffic and the Bulls went over again with 22 minutes on the clock after Dragons indiscipline allowed the hosts to probe in the 'red zone' and eventually put de Klerk over, the conversion added from out wide.
The visitors finally threatened in the 28th minute when they cut the Bulls open with a strike move from a scrum, O'Brien racing into the 22 with the South Africans forced into desperate scrambling defence.
A knock-on gave the Dragons another attacking opportunity from a five-metre scrum, only for tighthead Chris Coleman to be penalised.
HIT: The Dragons have the Bulls' Willie le Roux wrapped up (Image: Gordon Arons/Huw Evans Agency)
It was a stop-start game but the Bulls had a chance to get their four-try bonus with the last play of the half when a penalty was booted to five metres out.
The drive came on and hooker Akker van der Merwe grounded the ball, Johannes adding his third conversion to make it 26-0.
A superb defensive read and hit by fly-half Lloyd Evans gave the Dragons the chance to strike first after the restart, with O'Brien pumping the penalty five metres out.
Another penalty led to a quick tap, hard carry by hooker Brodie Coghlan and then wonderful wide pass by scrum-half Rhodri Williams to the left wing for Anderson to go over to make it 26-5.
A second followed in the 49th minute and it was a cracker, Williams spotting a gap to snipe at a ruck, kick over the last man and then win the race with Springboks legend Willie le Roux.
O'Brien made a mess of a second conversion and it remained 26-10 with half an hour to go.
Alas, Wales number eight Aaron Wainwright dropped the restart, Coghlan picked it up from an offside position, the Bulls went to the corner and van der Merwe peeled off for a mismatch with half-backs Williams and Evans to make it 31-10.
A chip over the top nearly created a sixth after some dithering in the backfield but thankfully Canan Moodie failed to gather.
The Bulls didn't have to wait long for it though.
A scrum earned a penalty and they played with advantage for wing Sergeal Petersen to go over after some weak defence. The conversion made it 38-10 approaching the hour.
Petersen was over again with 61 on the clock after the power game was followed by a long pass to the left wing – 43-10.
It was going horribly wrong and a wonderful try followed straight from the restart; snipe by Bernard van der Linde, three cracking offloads and a diving finish by Marcell Coetzee.
The conversion by Johannes brought up the half century.
Legs were weary, lungs were burning and Devon Williams coasted over for another in the 69th minute.
Yet the next score was from Carmarthen hooker Lewis Morgan, who hit his man at a line-out almost immediately after coming on and was at the bottom of a drive that featured backs.
That allowed the Dragons to hunt an unlikely bonus but they were denied a fourth try when a forward pass by Anderson denied leaving winger Ashton Hewitt a final try for his hometown club.
Sadly, the TMO and referee Andrew Brace were unable to show some charity at the end of a nightmare season.
Bulls scorers: tries – Kriel, Wiese, de Klerk, van der Merwe (2), Petersen (2), Coetzee, D Williams; conversions – Johannes (5).
Dragons: O'Brien (E Rosser 69); Rees-Weldon (Hewitt 60), Westwood, Owen, Anderson; L Evans, R Williams (Hope 60); Kelleher-Griffiths (Hughes 16), Coghlan (Morgan 73), Coleman (Latu 69), J Davies (Langton-Cryer 46), Carter, Woodman, Lewis-Hughes (Minto 73), Wainwright.
Scorers: tries – Anderson, R Williams, Morgan,
Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland).