Leinster are the undisputed URC benchmark, so how will the Bulls catch up?

The challenge of getting the Vodacom Bulls to the top of Europe may be a daunting one, but even though they failed in their third Vodacom United Rugby Championship final in four years, Director of Rugby Jake White knows it is going to be their mountain to climb.

White has committed himself to sit down with the Bulls owners and management over the next few weeks to unpack how the season went, and how they failed for the third time in four years to achieve their goal of winning the URC.

Up until now White has consistently beaten the drum of getting more depth into his squad, and believes his team are far from where they need to be if they are to compete with the likes of Leinster and the top French sides in Europe.

The Bulls will never be able to match them in terms of money, so their hope is more to load their side with Springbok-quality experience to ensure that when the chips are down, their experience shines through.

LESSONS FROM BULLS OF 2000s

The difference between Leinster’s star-studded side and the Bulls this past weekend was clear to see.

But like Heyneke Meyer’s team in the early 2000s that struggled to get across the line against the Crusaders, there were more factors at play than just loading your team with superstars.

That combination of a coaching change - Meyer brought in Australian Todd Louden at the time - changed the game plan and relied more on the emerging senior leadership group, changed their semifinal losses in 2005 and 2006 into South Africa’s first Super Rugby title in 2007.

The added factor of a bit of luck (who remembers how the Bulls got the ball back after it slipped out of the side of the ruck in that 2007 final?) and a final played in South Africa all contributed back then.

But one of the biggest factors was a change of mindset that allowed the Bulls not to see the Stormers and other SA teams as their main rivals - but rather the Crusaders.

That may already be happening at the Bulls. They know if they are to compete against the likes of Leinster, Bordeaux, Toulouse and the rest, they need to up their quality.

The player roster is one part of that, but the other part is to ensure that their set-up is as professional as it can be - from top to bottom.

As much as the Bulls are the top SA team, the gulf between them and Leinster was laid bare to see on Saturday, and was made worse when some of their most experienced players had nightmares on the field.

MILLION-DOLLAR QUESTION

So what is the answer? That’s the million-dollar question that White has to answer.

This season he spoke at length about the Cornal Hendricks factor as the team’s “why” that should have spurred them on to victory.

But while they had the desire they were found wanting when the chips were down.

They were met by a Leinster team faster, hungrier and more committed to the title, and they had little answer.

White is one who has on several occasions said losses should be stored in memory banks to remind players when they need it most.

That will have happened. But there also needs to be a change to get them over that line.

Players will get older, more experienced and tougher, but so will the opposition, so finding that key element is what the Bulls currently need, and it is an open question whether they have it with the way their current management structure - which is centralised around White - works?

NIENABER WORTH HIS WEIGHT IN GOLD FOR LEINSTER

That's something for the management of the Bulls to decide, but Leinster’s recruitment of Jacques Nienaber paid off this past weekend - as it has the entire season.

The Bulls could do something similar - not in a defensive coaching role, but in an area they identify as their need.

There are other places as well - the obsession with the Currie Cup can be shifted, and key personnel are needed in certain areas as well.

To be a squad that challenges for titles, the Bulls can’t have a second-string outfit that can’t be competitive against big guns.

That takes time and effort, and there has hopefully been a desire to see that happen.

White admitted as much after the game, saying that some introspection would take place over the coming weeks.

“It's going to be tough. To be fair, I mean there were guys this week telling me how hard it is for Leinster to get over the line. I would like everyone to understand, it's just because you go to the dance doesn't mean you're going to get the main dance every time either,” White said when asked what it would take to get that elusive title.

“And playing in three finals doesn't give you the right to win it. There will always be opportunities. When I look back at last year's final, there were chances.

“In the first final, we were very, very young and very new. And now we played against a really good, well-balanced, well-oiled side. So there's going to be new challenges next year again.

NEW RECRUITS WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE

“I need to sit with the decision makers and just find out what we need in order to step up. You know, next year we signed Handre Pollard, so he's coming in as a 10. We signed Jan Serfontein from Montpellier. Stormers scrumhalf Paul de Wet is joining us, as is Nicolaas Janse van Rensburg, who played lock and flank and is a Springbok as well.

“I'm not for one minute saying that's going to solve it, but we're going to have to have a look and see what else we need in order for our team to go to the next level. Because there's no doubt that Leinster won't go backwards. Leinster will continue going forwards.

“That's why, you know, we're going to have to find a way. If we're going to win this competition in the next couple of years, we're going to have to beat Leinster. There's no doubt in my mind about that. It's just by chance that they haven't been in the finals in the last four years. Just by chance.

“And I'll say it again. No other team has played them with their full-strength team at home in a knockout game.”

The introspection and arrival of new signings will make a difference for the Bulls, but their squad management, the trust that is put in their players and coaching staff across the board will be key.

Leinster remain the benchmark and the Bulls now know how far off they are.

How they react remains to be seen.