Both teams went into the titanic North-South derby with added motivation to perform. Connacht’s 15-10 victory in Belfast on Friday night eliminated Ulster from the tournament, and thereby guaranteed the winner of the playoff in Cape Town a home semi-final.

As it happened, the Stormers dominated the first half, and then held their nerve in the second to complete a convincing victory in front of a record crowd of 44,109. The result marked the Cape franchise’s sixth-consecutive win in the Vodacom URC against their rivals from Pretoria.

Springbok flyhalf Manie Libbok was at the heart of the hosts’ excellent kicking performance. The Stormers pinned the Bulls in their own territory for much of the first half as they managed to build up a 17-7 halftime lead.

The Bulls fought back strongly with late tries by Embrose Papier and Bismarck du Plessis, but with Libbok adding two further penalty goals for the home side, their efforts fell short.

Scorers:

Stormers 33 (17) – Tries: Hacjivah Dayimani, Leolin Zas, Angelo Davids. Conversions: Manie Libbok (3). Penalty : Libbok (4).

Bulls 21 (7) – Tries: Cyle Brink, Embrose Papier, Bismarck du Plessis. Conversions: Johan Goosen, Chris Smith (2).