A victory for the men from Pretoria will have extra significance for South African rugby as it will rubberstamp the country’s status as one of the top in the world following the Springboks second Rugby World Cup victory in a row in France last year and the Hollywoodbets Sharks’ victory in the EPCR Challenge Cup last month where they overcame Gloucester 36-22 to become the first domestic team to win the title.
The Vodacom Bulls will enter the clash as favourites with home ground advantage and the fact that they finished second on the table in the pool stages of the competition – two places above the Glasgow Warriors – but they will undoubtedly expect an epic battle as both teams have won 15 matches apiece this season. But fortunately for Jake White’s men, they will enter the match with good momentum after winning their last two playoff matches against Benetton and Leinster at home respectively.
The newly crowned SA Shield winners will also enter the match with the mental boost that they boast the best attack in the competition with 694 points scored to Glasgow’s 563, while they have also only suffered one defeat at home this season. Adding to this, they defeated Glasgow 40-34 in a repeat of this match during the pool stages.
They will, however, be mindful of the fact that Glasgow have been more effective on defence with 373 points conceded in their 20 their matches this season to 476 by the home team, and that they only beat the Scottish outfit by seven points in their last outing.
That said, the visitors have only beaten them once in their last three Vodacom URC matches dating back to 2022 – with that win being at the Scotstoun Stadium.
Glasgow have also been effective on the road this season, winning six of their 10 away matches – although they suffered defeats in both their matches hosted in South Africa against the Emirates Lions and Vodacom Bulls respectively.
History, however, will count for nothing going into this encounter with the title of Vodacom United Rugby Championship champions at stake, which will set the scene for a gripping final.
Vodacom URC grand final match information:
Vodacom Bulls v Glasgow Warriors
Date: Saturday, 22 June
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Referee: Andrea Piardi
SA Time: 18h00
TV: SuperSport
