Waratahs hammer fading Blues
Sat, 05 Apr 2008 12:36
Score: The Waratahs celebrate another try
The Waratahs put their off-field troubles behind them to record a convincing 37-16 Super 14 victory over the fading Blues in Sydney on Saturday.
The 'Tahs scored five tries and in the process moved up to sixth in the Super 14 standings and are in the hunt for a semifinal berth.
The home side had endured a torrid week up until kick-off. Ewen McKenzie learnt that he would no longer be the coach in 2009, and Rocky Elsom was ruled out for six weeks on the eve of the match.
But rugby is played between the four lines, and boy, did the 'Tahs prove a point to all their critics.
They dominated the Blues for the entire 80 minutes. They nullified Daniel Braid at the breakdown, they defended with purpose and attacked with venom.
The Blues had no answer. They simply could not get their hands on enough ball. The 'Tahs enjoyed 75 percent possession in the first half which tells a story.
After such a good start to the tournament, Troy Flavell's men are no longer looking like title contenders. For the fifth week running they were ordinary, decidedly so.
It starting off well enough for the visitors though.
Joe Rokocoko found space and streaked downfield, only to be stopped in his tracks by Kurtley Beale.
The Blues recycled and Tom Carter drifted off-side.
Nick Evans stepped up and slotted the penalty. 3-0 to the Blues after 4 minutes.
But from then on it was the Waratahs who dominated proceedings at the Sydney Football Stadium.
They showed there intent early on by refusing to take a goalable kick, opting instead for a line-out. The gamble paid off as the 'Tahs attacked the Blues' try-line with wave after wave of attack. The pressure told when prop Benn Robinson barged his way over from close range to get the 'Tahs on the scoreboard. Beale missed the conversion. 5-3 after 16 minutes.
But the Blues struck back four minutes later.
Nick Evans was the catalyst as he made a sniping break through the midfield. He then put a beautifully weighted chip through for Toeava to chase. Lachie Turner got there first though and looked to have saved the day. But he fumbled the ball and Troy Flavell pounced on the loose ball. Evans hooked the conversion but the Blues were 8-5 ahead after 20 minutes.
Five minutes later Benson Stanley was off-side from a kick, presenting Kurtley Beale with the opportunity to level the scores. He duly obliged to make it 8-all.
The last 10 minutes of the first half proved to be the turning point.
Firstly, Blues hooker Kevin Mealamu was sin-binned for slowing the ball down. Then Kurtis Haiu was penalised for a high tackle. Beale stepped up and made it 11-8.
Then came the moment that had former Wallaby hooker Phil Kearns in raptures in the commentary box. Troy Flavell lost the ball after a huge hit from his opposing skipper, Phil Waugh. Polota-Nau pounced and streaked ahead. He couldn't believe his luck as he found himself with nobody but the try-line ahead of him. He pinned his ears back and ran for all his worth to score a great try.
Beale added the extras to make it 18-8 at the break. It was a crippling blow to the Blues to concede seven points on the stroke of half-time.
However, they came out firing in the second half, but the 'Tahs stood firm in defence.
Evans had the chance to narrow the gap in the 47th minute but his penalty attempt struck the upright. Soon after he made amends for his near miss with a cooly taken penalty. 18-11 after 52 minutes.
At this stage the Blues were well and truly in the match, but their comeback aspirations were soon to be quashed by Wycliff Palu.
The 'Tahs were awarded a free kick close to the Blues try-line. They spread it quickly and Lote Tuqiri came within inches of scoring after he burst through the attempted tackle of Benson Stanley. The ball was recycled quickly to Palu, who was not going to be stopped five metres from the line - and 23-11 became 25-11 as Beale kicked the conversion.
There were 20 minutes to play in Sydney, and the Blues needed to score next to stay in this contest. They did just that five minutes later!
The television match official was called upon to adjudicate whether Benson Stanley had scored. He had indeed. But Evans missed the conversion, and at 16-25, the Blues still needed to score twice in the final 15 minutes.
But it was the Waratahs who scored twice in the final 15 minutes.
The 'Tahs took advantage of a poorly directed chip kick from George Pisi to put the game beyond doubt. Sam Norton-Knight found space and Lote Tuqiri came in on the angle to wrong-foot the Blues defence. It was Tuqiri's 25th try for the 'Tahs, breaking Matthew Burke's record of 24 touchdowns.
At 30-16 with 10 minutes to play, the 'Tahs were home and dry.
A few minutes later the 'Tahs new No.9, Luke Burgess pounced on a botched Blues line-out and set off.
He had 65 metres to run and ran 60 of them. He bamboozled Rokocoko with some excellent stepping and turned the All Black flyer inside out. Rokocoko saved his blushes when he chased back and bundled the livewire scrumhalf into touch.
Burgess has a great game in the No.9 jersey. His service was slick, he kicked well and kept the Blues defence on their toes for the full 80 minutes.
The 'Tahs scored their fifth try in the dying seconds. Replacement hooker Adam Freier, reminiscent of Polota-Nau's first half heroics, found himself in space. He ran a full 40 metres before the lactic acid took over. He could barely lift his knees after his bullocking run, but Dean Mumm, playing at No.6 in place of Rocky Elsom, was on hand to dive over for the try in the corner.
Beale made it 37-16 with a sweetly struck conversion. The hooter sounded at the 'Tahs season was suddenly back on track.
Man of the Match: Phil Waugh's workrate was second to none. Tuqiri worked hard but Luke Burgess deserved the accolades for his energetic display.
Moment of the match: Tatafu Polota-Nau's try on the stroke of half-time. The hooker showed a clean pair of heels as he sprinted all of 50 metres to score a memorable try.
Villain of the match: Kevin Mealamu was sin-binned but it wasn't a malicious act. Besides his misdemeanor, there were no villains.
The Scorers:
For the Waratahs:
Tries: Robinson, Polota-Nau, Palu, Tuqiri, Mumm
Cons: Beale 2
Pens: Beale 3
For the Blues:
Tries: Flavell, Stanley
Pens: Evans 2
Teams:
Waratahs: 15 Sam Norton-Knight, 14 Lachie Turner, 13
Ben Jacobs, 12 Tom Carter, 11 Lote Tuqiri, 10 Kurtley Beale, 9 Luke Burgess, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 Phil Waugh (captain), 6 Dean Mumm, 5 Dan Vickerman, 4 Will Caldwell , 3 Matt Dunning, 2 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1 Benn Robinson.
Replacements: 16 Adam Freier, 17 Al Baxter, 18 David Lyons, 19 Beau Robinson, 20 Brett Sheehan, 21 Rob Horne, 22 Alfi Mafi.
Blues: 15 George Pisi, 14 Joe Rokocoko, 13 Isaia Toeava, 12 Benson Stanley, 11 Anthony Tuitavake, 10 Nick Evans, 9 Danny Lee, 8 Nick Williams, 7 Daniel Braid, 6 Jerome Kaino, 5 Troy Flavell (captain), 4 Kurtis Haiu, 3 John Afoa, 2 Kevin Mealamu, 1 Tony Woodcock.
Replacements: 16 Tom McCartney, 17 Nick White, 18 Anthony Boric, 19 Justin Collins, 20 Taniela Moa, 21 Ben Atiga, 22 Rudi Wulf.
Referee: Marius Jonker (South Africa)
Touch judges: Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa), Grant MacNeill (Australia)
Television match
official: Geoff Acton (Australia)
Assessor: Andrew Cole (Australia)
