Physically it may have looked like David v Goliath, but in reality it was a top of the table clash as the Chiefs hosted the Bulls on the last leg of their arduous tour.
The Bulls would have felt at home with the sound of jangling cowbells ringing out around Rugby Park in Hamilton, and they started the match with fire in their bellies. Using their enormous forwards to get them over the advantage line the Bulls looked liked they might roll right over the top of the homeside, particularly with Morne Steyn’s ever reliable boot functioning flawlessly.
But the Chiefs bravely hung in there, and were the first to cross the line when fullback Andrew Horrell scored an opportunists try.
The Bulls scored just before the break to take a handy lead in to the shed, and the first 20 minutes of the second spell became a tactical battle, with both sides adding points in increments of three.
However, the game boiled down to X-factor, and it was the Waikato-based franchise who had it in spades, scoring twice in the last quarter to take the victory 28-22, and send the Bulls home to face the Stormers on the back of two-straight losses.