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Waratahs win ... with some help

Sat, 06 Mar 2010 12:42

Fortuitous: Waratahs captain Phil Waugh

The Waratahs managed to keep the Sharks winless, scoring a fortuitous 25-21 win in their Super 14 Round Four match in Sydney on Saturday.

But there will be much controversy about referee Paul Marks not awarding a penalty try to the Sharks with two minutes to go and the home team leading by four points and a few of his other calls.

A pass from Stefan Terblanche to Ryan Kankowski when Kankowski looked set for a run-in for the winning try, was deliberately knocked down by Kurtley Beale, who was yellow-carded but a penalty - and not a penalty try - was awarded.

Should it have been a penalty try?

It was outside the 22 but the only relevant question the law book asks is whether Kankowski would "probably have scored a try but for foul play by an opponent". The key word is "probably" - and the assessment for the referee would hinge on whether he believed another defender was close enough to have stopped the try. Or perhaps that the pass was not good, which for all the world it certainly appeared to be.

"We probably got away with it a bit at the end there," said Waratahs captain Phil Waugh, summing up the situation succinctly.

And as Sharks and Springbok captain John Smit said: "You lose four in a row, you don't get the rub of the green from any referee anyway."

The game was impressively physical but the skills on show were not particularly good on either side.

The Waratahs will be concerned about their lack of fluency on attack. At times it all looked a bit frenetic, with too much rushing and insufficient patience. Failing to score any points and conceding eight when the Sharks had two men in the sin-bin will be a big worry for them, as will their inability to receive kick-offs competently.

Again this Sharks side didn't play with the authority that their best teams in recent years have had as a hallmark. Their performance appears to be marked by a desperation to just somehow secure a result and escape the pressure on them to win. They seem not to play with a belief that they can impose themselves on the opposition and take control of the game.

It's a tough scenario - they are unlikely to win until they play with confidence and composure, but they're not going to play with confidence and composure until they start winning. And a lack of discipline at crucial times doesn't help their cause.

Coach John Plumtree and captain John Smit have an unenviable task in reviving the fortunes of their team.

A concern for both teams will be that while there was a lot of kicking in the game, much of it was inaccurate and some of it pointless, and it didn't help that the kick chase was often inadequate.

The Waratahs went into an immediate 3-0 lead after the kick-off when Sharks lock Johann Muller failed to roll away after a tackle and inside centre Berrick Barnes goaled the penalty from in front of the posts.

Two minutes later Sharks import, former England flyhalf Andy Goode marked his first start for his new team by slotting a magnificent long-range drop goal (3-3).

In the ninth minute outside Sharks centre Adi Jacobs failed to roll away from the tackled player and Barnes again goaled from in front of the uprights (6-3).

Goode levelled the score at 6-6 in the 17th minute when Waratahs left wing Drew Mitchell was penalised for incorrect entry at a tackle in front of his posts.

In the 21st minute Sharks tighthead Jannie du Plessis was yellow-carded for tripping Daniel Halangahu as the flyhalf followed his own kick - a strange infringement from an experienced international player - and at the third penalty following Du Plessis's banishment, Goode was yellow-carded for going offside and playing the ball on his goal-line.

The visitors had been reduced to 13 players, but the Waratahs weren't able to score from a series of penalties and a free kick close to the Sharks tryline, and relief came for the Sharks when at another five metre attacking scrum, hooker Tatafu Polota-Nau was free-kicked for early engagement.

From the rushed Waratahs line-out following the free kick Luke Burgess's long pass was intercepted by an alert Kankowski, who showed impressive pace and ran 70 metres to score. Scrumhalf Ruan Pienaar bungled the conversion but the Sharks had gone ahead 11-6 in the 26th minute with two players in the sin-bin.

Pienaar made amends three minutes later when Waugh was penalised at breakdown close to his goal-line and the Sharks number nine goaled the angled penalty (14-6). They had scored eight points without reply while down to 13 men.

But the home team fought back immediately. From the kick-off Polota-Nau carried strongly into the 22 and Halangahu cut through the defence to score next to the posts. Barnes converted and the lead had been reduced to 14-13.

As the half drew to a close, a try-saving tackle by Terblanche on Polota-Nau held the Waratahs out but only briefly as outside centre Tom Carter then crashed over the line - despite a great tackle by Kankowski, who almost succeeded in holding him up - and was awarded a try on the advice of TMO Matt Goddard. Barnes missed the conversion but the Waratahs went into halftime 18-14 ahead.

It was an even game for 10 minutes after the break, but then Carter split the defence and from the ruck near the Sharks tryline, Burgess timed his pop pass perfectly to send Polota-Nau bursting through powerfully at pace for a try under the posts. Barnes converted and the Waratahs led 25-14 with just under half an hour to play.

The Waratahs, too often insecure when receiving kick-offs, fluffed this one as well and the Sharks managed at last to attain attacking continuity. After multiple phases in which the Sharks showed a patience which has eluded them for much of the year, Jacobs rounded off for a try which Goode converted (25-21).

With two minutes to play, Terblanche raced away from defenders a few metres in from the right touchline and tried to feed a flying Kankowski on his outside. It looked to be a match-winning try rounded off from 30 metres out by Kankowski but a deliberate knock forward by replacement Beale stopped the movement. Beale was yellow-carded but the Sharks were not able to score a winning try from the penalty, being penalised for obstruction at their attacking line-out.

The game ended a minute later, with the home team fortunate to have won and the visitors unlucky to have lost.

Man of the Match: Not many players will be excited about their own performances in a game where neither team's display was convincing and few individuals stood out. Streetsmart 34-year-old Stefan Terblanche was an exception, showing a range of skills and the wisdom of his experience. Ryan Kankowski had his best game of the season. Daniel Halangahu and Tom Carter may not be the perfect packages as backs yet but they certainly can cut the line. But the Man of the Match must be Waratahs hooker Tatafu Polota-Nau, who does his work so competently in set pieces and is a dynamic force at breakdown and as a ball-carrier. He takes quite some stopping by tacklers.

The scorers:

For the Waratahs:
Tries: Halangahu, Carter, Polota-Nau
Cons: Barnes 2
Pens: Barnes 2

For the Sharks:
Tries: Kankowski, Jacobs
Con: Goode
Pens: Goode, Pienaar
DG: Goode

Yellow cards: Jannie du Plessis (Sharks, 21 - foul play, tripping), Andy Goode (Sharks, 23 - repeated infringements, slowing down at the breakdown), Kurtley Beale (Waratahs, 78 - professional foul, knocking the ball down)

Teams:

Waratahs: 15 Sosene Anesi, 14 Lachie Turner, 13 Tom Carter, 12 Berrick Barnes, 11 Drew Mitchell, 10 Daniel Halangahu, 9 Luke Burgess, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 Phil Waugh (captain), 6 Dave Dennis, 5 Kane Douglas, 4 Dean Mumm, 3 Al Baxter, 2 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1 Benn Robinson.
Replacements: 16 Damien Fitzpatrick, 17 Sekope Kepu, 18 Will Caldwell, 19 Ben Mowen, 20 Josh Holmes, 21 Kurtley Beale, 22 Rob Horne.

Sharks: 15 Stefan Terblanche, 14 Odwa Ndungane, 13 Adrian Jacobs, 12 Riaan Swanepoel, 11 JP Pietersen, 10 Andrew Goode, 9 Ruan Pienaar, 8 Ryan Kankowski, 7 Willem Alberts, 6 Keegan Daniel, 5 Johann Muller, 4 Steven Sykes, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 John Smit (captain), 1 Deon Carstens.
Replacements: 16 Bismarck du Plessis, 17 Tendai Mtawarira, 18 Wilhelm Steenkamp, 19 Jean Deysel, 20 Jacques Botes, 21 Rory Kockott, 22 Waylon Murray.

Referee: Paul Marks (Australia)
Assistant referees: Nathan Pearce (Australia), Steve Hardy (Australia)
TMO: Matt Goddard (Australia)

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