“We played well at stages and I would say it was a great start to our campaign.

“You do not get any points for a game like this, but psychologically it is always valuable to get a win under the belt and it certainly does create a lot of momentum and positive energy in the team.”

Ludeke said the Bulls were strong in the set pieces and he added that Gary Botha was particularly impressive in the scrums and in the tight loose.

“It is very nice to have Gary back, but all the players did what we expected of them and we can definitely build on tonight’s performance.”

The Bulls’ backline coach Pieter Rossouw said the team adapted splendidly to the new break down laws and he was satisfied with the way some of the younger players performed.

“We worked really hard at certain aspects of our game and it was great to see that the guys did what we practised during training.

“Jacques-Louis Potgieter had a good outing at inside centre and I would say that apart from solid performances by the senior Boks, youngsters such as Stephan Dippenaar, Stefan Watermeyer, Sampie Mastriet and Clayton Blommetjies put up their hands.

“On the whole it was a grand victory and we are very positive about the season that lies ahead.”

The Bulls will not play any other warm-up matches and they will immediately shift their attention to their opening match against the Vodacom Cheetahs that is going to take place in Bloemfontein on Friday the 12th of February.