What NICK MALLETT had to say on SuperSport about the Vodacom Super Rugby derbies at Loftus and Newlands on Saturday.

‘To have a try like Hacjivah Dayimani’s scored in 14 seconds was a hell of a start to the game. This match was much better and more skillful than the Stormers-Sharks game. It was fantastic and so much more fun, that we actually woke up in studio.

‘This was such a positive finish compared to the way we were feeling after the Sharks-Stormers game, which was pretty subdued and left us thinking South African rugby is not going anywhere. It’s nice to see innovation from a South African teams, so congratulations to them.

‘I honestly didn’t think I could be sitting here after the Bulls-Lions derby in a different mood than I was after the Stormers-Sharks game. And I never thought I’d be sitting in a chair in South Africa saying that the (Vodacom) Bulls and Lions were far more skillful and innovative than the Sharks and Stormers. It used to be the coastal sides playing innovative rugby, coming up with clever moves and ways in which to confuse the defences.

‘But the quality of this game was just streets ahead of what we saw in the match before. And for the Lions not to go into the playoffs is pretty sad because they contributed to a wonderful spectacle at Loftus. Unfortunately it was taken away from them at the end but through no lack of effort from the Lions.

‘The Bulls thoroughly deserved to win. Even though they already qualified, you could see they played with great enthusiasm. I’m not a fan of Man of the Match awards, because rugby is a team game above all and the Bulls team did very well as a collective. I wish them the very best of luck against the Hurricanes. If they play with the same enthusiasm and vigour, they’ve got an opportunity in the quarter-final.’

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