From Parma to Durban, the URC Matches – October 2025 weekend told a story of cohesion beating reputation, of grit overcoming travel fatigue, and of continental contenders sharpening their edges before the international break. South Africa’s quartet experienced almost every shade of that spectrum, with the Stormers staying perfect, the Bulls finding their backbone, the Lions breathing again, and the Sharks searching for answers under the heaviest of spotlights.
Stormers surge continues as Benetton shootout awaits
The DHL Stormers did not need to be dazzling to be decisive in Parma, banking a bonus-point 31-13 victory over Zebre that made it four from four and kept them at the top of the table. Director of rugby John Dobson admitted his team felt a touch flat, yet their structure, set-piece and edge in key moments again carried them over the line against a tricky Italian opponent.
Dobson called the next stop in Treviso a “shootout,” a reminder that Benetton have been a persistent thorn in Stormers colours. The history is uncomfortable, with narrow away defeats and even the infamous moment two seasons ago when hooker Joseph Dweba dived jubilantly, only to discover the line was the wrong one, and the game slipped by a single point. For a team that now covets prime log position, Treviso has become an exam venue they have yet to master.
There was plenty to like in Parma. The Stormers were over the line multiple times only to be held up, and even if Ruhan Nel’s late intercept felt opportunistic, the visitors had already engineered a platform through their pack. Dobson highlighted the lineout and maul as standouts, and while scrum penalties came later than in recent weeks, the set-piece held firm despite a front-row injury list that would flatten most squads.
It mattered that the spine performed. Without Ntuthuko Mchunu, Neethling Fouche, Sazi Sandi and Frans Malherbe, debutant starter Zachary Porthen impressed, and the contestable kicking assault on young JC Mars was repelled with admirable calm. Dobson was also pleased with the defensive organisation, saying Zebre were forced to go aerial rather than build sustained pressure, a nod to the work done without the ball.
There is fresh cavalry arriving too. Captain Salmaan Moerat has joined the tour group and is available, and Cobus Reinach is flying in to bolster the halfback stocks. Dobson remains mindful of Springbok workload management, weighing whether Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Damian Willemse should return home briefly before the Test window. The balance between momentum and prudence is delicate, and it sharpens the stakes for a meeting with Benetton that could shape both teams’ early-season trajectories.
What worked for the Stormers
- Set-piece control, especially lineout and maul, which kept Zebre pinned and yielded momentum,
- Composure under contestables, with JC Mars targeted but steady,
- Defensive shape that forced Zebre to kick, and the ability to strike via turnover moments.
Bulls grit in Galway and a defensive blueprint
The Bulls did not just escape Galway, they earned something far more valuable than four points. A 28-27 win over Connacht steadied a campaign that had wobbled a week earlier in Belfast, and it was built on work-rate, structure and a willingness to tackle until the last breath. Head coach Johan Ackermann’s sweeping changes, 11 to the starting XV and six to the bench, delivered urgency and clarity.
After conceding 14 tries and 99 points across their first three games, the Bulls answered with a mountain of effort. They made 236 tackles, missing only around two dozen, a raw number that spoke to attitude as much as system. Ackermann called it a massive effort, and he was right to, because the game nearly slipped late, and the visitors still found enough poise to close it out.
“Defence is a big part of how much you care for each other and the team. I am very proud of the players. It is still not perfect, but the way the guys put their bodies out there, it was a massive effort,” Ackermann said.
The response was necessary. Bulls president Willem Strauss had labelled the Ulster loss as arguably their worst performance since joining the URC. Ackermann’s reshuffle created healthy competition and a pointed reaction. Jeandré Rudolph, Nama Xaba and Reinhardt Ludwig each cracked more than 20 tackles, the backline and locks were praised for their steel, and a line in the sand was drawn for the weeks ahead.
The message now is continuity of effort. Glasgow await next, at Scotstoun, and the Warriors are humming. Ackermann called them world-class and promised tweaks, but the deeper promise is cultural, that the Bulls will carry Galway’s resolve to Scotland. The log says sixth for now, but Glasgow is an audit of consistency as much as skill.
Lions take a step at Ellis Park with Ulster test ahead
The Lions needed light, any light, and found it in Johannesburg. A 29-18 bonus-point win over Scarlets lifted the mood, and importantly, it rewarded a month of work that had not budged the scoreboard during a bruising opening tour of Cardiff, Zebre and Benetton. Captain Francke Horn called it one step closer to where they want to be, which is both modest and accurate.
It was not perfect, as Horn conceded. There were nervy stretches, and the game demanded calm rather than flourish, but the points and the poise arrived in time. Coach Ivan van Rooyen’s message was equally grounded, emphasising cohesion on attack and a sharper breakdown, the kind of small improvements that often underpin a mid-season climb. Against Scarlets, the pictures were there, and more often, the Lions saw them clearly.
The next picture is a far sterner one. Ulster are unbeaten this season, their rhythm evident after a confident tour win in Durban, and they come to Ellis Park surging. Van Rooyen was frank about the size of the task, and recent history offers a sliver of comfort, since the Lions won this fixture 35-22 last season. They will need more than sentiment now, because Ulster look a level sharper, and the Highveld must be an ally rather than a crutch.
“Our cohesion on attack should allow us to utilise the pictures we created, as well as our attacking breakdown. We also need to ensure we have consistency all around and ensure we are all on the same page,” Van Rooyen said.
Sharks search for answers amid star power
No result cut deeper than in Durban. The Hollywoodbets Sharks fielded a starting XV with 13 Springboks and four more on the bench, yet fell 34-26 to Ulster. A winless start of three defeats and a draw has them 14th with three points, a jarring echo of their 2023 to 2024 struggles rather than last season’s surge to third and the SA Shield.
John Plumtree did not duck the disappointment. He called his side flat, lamented a lack of physicality in moments that mattered, and praised Ulster’s clinical finishing. There were flickers of fight as Siya Kolisi scored in the 32nd minute and Makazole Mapimpi crossed after halftime, but Vincent Koch’s yellow, then Mapimpi’s yellow upgraded to red, stretched the task beyond reach. Momentum proved fragile, and Ulster were not in a charitable mood.
“We just didn’t turn up physically. The comeback was always going to be difficult after that. But it was a bad night for us, there are no excuses here,” Plumtree said.
Plumtree also acknowledged the expectation that comes with a star-laden roster and investment. Marco Masotti, the head of majority shareholder MVM Holdings, will be disappointed, the coach admitted, and the response must be inward rather than rhetorical. The Sharks have added Springbok prop Thomas du Toit, but transfers alone have not solved the central problem, which is cohesion that can weather pressure.
There is a wider context. As one weekend wrap observed, teams that enjoyed uninterrupted pre-seasons together are thriving, while those reintegrating top internationals are discovering rust and disconnection. The Bulls learned that in Belfast, and even Leinster, perennial pace-setters, stumbled after a pre-season conducted without their many British and Irish Lions tourists. It is not an excuse, as Plumtree stressed, it is an explanation that frames the work ahead of Scarlets next week, where the Sharks simply need a win to galvanise any comeback.
What the early log tells us
The first month has not so much sorted the league as it has revealed habits. Stormers, Munster, Ulster, Cardiff, the Bulls and a rampant Glasgow populate the upper tier with either perfect records or a single dropped point. Leinster, so dominant last season, have one win in four. The Sharks are searching, still without a victory.
Travel hardened teams, and the numbers underline the point. In Round 4, six of the eight fixtures were won by the visitors, an anomaly that nonetheless fits the theme that organised teams travel well when their systems are aligned. The Stormers’ Parma poise, the Bulls’ Galway grit, and Glasgow’s Ospreys rout all nodded to that reality, while Zebre’s home bite earlier in the season remains a cautionary tale for anyone arriving undercooked.
Round 4 results at a glance
- Dragons 17, Cardiff Rugby 24,
- Edinburgh 43, Benetton 0,
- Connacht 27, Vodacom Bulls 28,
- Emirates Lions 29, Scarlets 18,
- Ospreys 17, Glasgow Warriors 42,
- Hollywoodbets Sharks 26, Ulster 34,
- Leinster 14, Munster 31,
- Zebre 13, DHL Stormers 31.
The common thread cohesion beats star power
There is a recurring rhythm to this October. Teams that kept their core together through pre-season, like Munster, Ulster, Glasgow and the Stormers, look synchronized and assertive. Those forced to reassemble their international engines on the fly are misfiring. Even Leinster, guided by Leo Cullen’s steady hand, found that reintegrating returning stars is not a seamless exercise, especially when the opposition is already tuned.
For South Africa’s sides the moral is clear. The Stormers have married depth with detail, their pack leading, their defence aligned. The Bulls have rediscovered a hard edge that can travel, and if they keep the standard of Galway, the table will reward them. The Lions have the beginnings of momentum, they must bottle it. The Sharks must transform names on a teamsheet into relationships on the field, an old lesson that counts double when the ball bounces against you. The pattern holds most force when pressure spikes, which is why consistency in plan and selection may prove the decisive currency through November.
What to watch next week
The immediate futures are loaded with insight and consequence. Here is what stands out from a South African vantage point.
- Benetton vs Stormers in Treviso, a venue where the leaders have not yet performed and where a win would validate their early surge,
- Glasgow vs Bulls at Scotstoun, a stress test of the Galway standard against a Warriors side in full flow,
- Lions vs Ulster at Ellis Park, a measure of progress against one of the form teams in the competition,
- Sharks vs Scarlets in Durban, a must-win yardstick for a star-studded squad seeking cohesion and confidence.
Final whistle
October has been a mirror. It reflected the Stormers’ momentum, the Bulls’ capacity for resolve, the Lions’ hunger to climb, and the Sharks’ obligation to turn reputation into rhythm. Not all mirrors flatter, but they always instruct. The teams that listen in the coming week will step into the break with tailwinds, the ones that do not will feel the headwinds harder when the league resumes. For now, the lesson is simple enough to print on a dressing-room wall, and hard enough to live every minute, that structure, trust and timing beat noise every time.
