In any case the first half consisted of: a brilliant try to Cullen against the run of play in the 30th minute; another try to the 'other' Van Der Westhuizen; Jannie De Beer kicking his little shorts off and the referee (who looked like he'd only recently completed puberty) giving away mystifying penalties and failing to play advantage.
The score at halftime: 23-13 to the Bulls.
The second half had only just started when Holwell ran through to grab the Hurricanes' second try of the match. At this stage, Joost Van Der Westhuizen was brought on for the first time this season. However this didn't prevent the Bulls' defence going to sleep and allowing Darryl Lilly (playing on the wing in the place of Jonah Lomu) to touch down ten minutes later.
In the meantime, the viewers at home were kept amused by the idiosynchratic South African TV clock, which not unlike the Energizer bunny, keeps going (even in injury time).
The Hurricanes kept attacking, and the Bulls resorted to spoiling tactics and conceding penalties, as well as some great displays of improvised theatre (which extended the injury time even more). A Holwell penalty meant the Hurricanes were ahead 28-23.
Then it all went to custard for some reason. It began shortly after the visitors knocked the ball on, five metres out from their own in-goal. The Bulls took possession, pushed towards the line and the Hurricanes conceded a penalty try for handling the ball in a ruck.
At this stage, the South African commentators were creaming themselves with excitement, as the clock was suggesting there was only 6 or 7 minutes to go. There was, in fact, well over a quarter of an hour remaining.
There were a few scoring opportunities for the 'Canes, but they became lethargic in the high altitude. Cullen had the ball and no one in front of him at one stage, but seemed to run out of gas. When De Beer kicked over another goal, and Eugene Meyer scored a try from nowhere, the game was apparently won and the Hurricanes' season over for another year.
However the game dragged on, and Fleming scored a consolation try in the '49th minute'. The score was 40-33 to the Bulls, and the visitors were still in it. The crowd was getting understandably edgy as the clock suggested the half had been going for over 50 minutes. This prompted a loyal Bulls fan to leap onto the field and assault the referee.
However the referee wanted to see another try before he went home, and in minute 55 of the second half, Hannie Venter dotted down to seal the game for the Bulls.
The game finished, eventually, fifty-seven minutes into the second half. Final score: 47-33 to the Bulls.
This is the last Hurricanes post I will make this Super 12. Overall their season has been pretty good and a marked improvement on last year's effort. With a little more discipline, and a bit of luck, they might have had their world-class backline in action more often, and they would have made it to the playoffs for sure.
Oh well, roll on the NPC and best of luck to the Crusaders for the coming matches. Let's hope we can keep at least one piece of international rugby silverware in the country for another year.
