If ever there was an illustration of the real impact Jake White and his coaching lieutenants are making at Loftus, it was Saturday's 43-26 URC victory over Ospreys.
AS IT HAPPENED | Bulls v Ospreys
It's not about the fact that this win puts them level on log points (29) with the Stormers - who do have a game in hand - at the top of the South African shield.
It's not about the enduring class of seniors like Nizaam Carr, Bismarck du Plessis and Lionel Mapoe, who were all incisive and influential with ball in hand and on the ground.
And it's not about the franchise's rising superstars in new captain Ruan Nortje and Elrigh Louw continuing to dominate at this level.
This victory was about David Kriel, the epitome of White and co's ability to mould players that fly under the radar into top-class alternatives when the Boks - notably Kurt-Lee Arendse, Canan Moodie and Sbu Nkosi - aren't around.
The lanky 23-year-old has been excellent this season as one of White's backline bolters, a man who's switched between midfield, fullback and wing with aplomb.
However, on what turned out to be a beautiful, sunny Highveld afternoon after kick-off was pushed back by 30 minutes by a preceding thunderstorm, Kriel was a proverbial King Midas - everything he touched turned to gold.
His most obvious contribution was a brace of tries, showcasing his predatory instincts for crossing the whitewash.
The first was in the seventh minute when he was on hand to finish a silky set-move from a lineout where Harold Vorster's switch to Embrose Papier allowed the ball to go down the line.
And then, in the 32nd minute, a brilliant tackle from Mapoe put the Welsh side under pressure at a breakdown, where Kriel pounced on a loose ball, fed Mapoe, who in turn conjured up a sublime backhand off-load for his winger.
Yet those scores shouldn't be allowed to overshadow what Kriel did without possession.
It was his aerial contest from the kick-off for the second half that gave the Bulls immediate momentum upon the resumption.
In the 55th minute, Kriel prevented a certain Ospreys try when he skilfully dislodged the ball from the carrier by sneakily wrapping his right arm around.
Early in the final quarter, opposition pivot Jack Walsh kicked an awkward loose ball forward, which bounce suggested he was going to score, only for Kriel to keep his head and sweep the ball up on the slide.
It was brilliance personified.
Five other tries were scored by the hosts as they continue to show progress in mixing power with enterprise.
But White will be mildly disappointed by a third quarter that, at times, threatened to keep an Ospreys combination that really only hung on by feeding off scraps in the picture.
The lineout went to pieces once Jan-Hendrik Wessels' wayward throw-ins and communication were put into the equation and conceding a bonus point for letting in four tries felt unnecessary given their overall dominance.
Pleasingly, the finish to the game was emphatic as the Bulls found some vigour again on attack and scored twice in the final 10 minutes.
It gave them the scoreboard buffer they ... and Kriel, frankly, deserved.
Points scorers:
Bulls - (31) 43
Tries: David Kriel (2), Nizaam Carr, WJ Steenkamp, Elrigh Louw, Ruan Nortje, Zak Burger
Conversions: Chris Smith (3), Morne Steyn
Ospreys - (14) 26
Tries: Jack Walsh, Tiaan Thomas-Wheeler, Keiran Williams, Rhys Henry
Conversions: Walsh (3)