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Vodacom Bulls head coach Johan Ackermann leaves the pitch after his side’s victory in the United Rugby Championship match between Connacht and Vodacom Bulls at Dexcom Stadium in Galway. (Photo By Thomas Flinkow/Sportsfile via Getty Images) https://www.rugbypass.com/news/johan-ackermanns-bulls-suffer-shock-home-loss-to-lions/

The Lions returned from the international break with a disciplined, high-tempo display to stun the Bulls 43-33 at Loftus Versfeld, overturning expectations of a routine home URC win for the Pretorians. The result lifts the Lions into seventh place and leaves Johann Ackermann’s Bulls facing uncomfortable questions after a disjointed and error-strewn outing.

Indeed, what had been widely forecast as a routine home win quickly veered off-script as the Lions produced a composed and clinical opening quarter.

Chris Smith nudged the Jo’burgers ahead with an early penalty before Kelly Mpeku pounced on a loose ball to sprint clear for the first try.

It would get worse for the home side minutes later. The Bulls were still reorganising when Nico Steyn finished a flowing move sparked by a break from Smith, giving the visitors a 17-0 lead that silenced the home crowd.

The Bulls did steady themselves midway through the half.

Embrose Papier struck twice in quick succession, both scores coming from slick work on the edges as the hosts began to find cohesion.

But just as they threatened to tilt the match back their way, a defensive lapse opened the door for Jarod Cairns to strike. Akker van der Merwe’s maul try shortly before the break trimmed the deficit to 24-21, setting up what should have been a tight second half.

Instead, the Lions reasserted control almost immediately. Their pack grew in influence, and Etienne Oosthuizen powered over from a driving maul to restore a healthy lead.

Handling errors and misreads continued to hamper the Bulls, who allowed the visitors to dictate tempo and field position.

The decisive blow arrived in a two-minute burst when Eduan Keyter crossed out wide and Steyn added his second, stretching the advantage to a margin the Bulls never looked likely to reel in.

While Keagan Johannes and Sebastian de Klerk grabbed late tries, they served only to narrow a scoreline that accurately reflected the Lions’ superiority for most of the contest.