United Rugby Championship: Bulls, Sharks, and Lions Win Big While Stormers Suffer Defeat in Cardiff

• The Lions scored a massive nine tries as they thrashed Zebre in Johannesburg
• The Sharks were boosted by the return of their Springbok players as they won big
• The Bulls secured a bonus point in the first half during their win against Connacht

Round six of the United Rugby Championship concluded this past weekend, and there were some big wins for South African sides.

The Vodacom Bulls, Emirates Lions, and Hollywoodbets Sharks ran riot on home soil as they all picked up big wins.

The DHL Stormers, who were the only South African side to play away from home this round, didn’t have it as easy.

Sports Brief looks at how each South African side fared and what it means for the table.

Bulls 53 - Connacht 27

The Bulls showed no mercy in their game against Connacht, scoring four tries in the first half alone.

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Leading 32-13 at the break, the Bulls added a further three tries in the second half, picking up an impressive bonus point win. Springbok Willie le Roux also made his debut for the Pretoria-based outfit, scoring a try in the game, the BBC reported.

The win now sees the Bulls jump to third on the table.

Sharks 69 - Dragons 14

Talk about making an impact.

The Sharks welcomed back their Springbok superstars for the game against the Dragons. The Bok stars made an immediate impact as they helped lift the Durban-based side off the bottom of the table.

As noted by Planet Rugby, four of the Sharks’ Springbok players crossed over the try line.

The Dragons had moments where they looked like they could pose a threat but once the Sharks reached top gear, there was no stopping them. The Sharks have now moved to 14th on the log, leapfrogging the Dragons and Scarlets.

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Lions 61 - Zebre 19

It was like a lion mauling a zebra.

That’s the only way to describe what happened in Johannesburg over the weekend as the Lions thrashed Zebre Parma.

The Lions scored five tries in the first half to open up a 33-7 lead before scoring four more in the second half. The win saw the Lions secure 10th spot on the table, with a visit from the Dragons next up for them.

Cardiff 31 - Stormers 24

The only South African side not to pick up a win this weekend was the Stormers, but the Western Cape side almost got the job done.

As noted by The Citizen, a try after the full-time whistle gave Cardiff a hard-fought win on home soil. The Stormers were the better side for most of the night but imploded in the last 15 minutes, eventually losing the game.

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Cardiff leapfrogged the Stormers with the win, as the South African side now find themselves in 12th.

Super Rugby vs the URC

Following the pandemic, rugby in the Southern Hemisphere underwent a realignment with several pros and cons, as Sports Brief previously reported.

South Africa's shift from Super Rugby to the United Rugby Championship gave fans something novel, but there is still a yearning for the traditional rivalries.

Here are eight reasons why South African franchises should actually consider returning to their southern hemisphere roots versus remaining in Europe.