Blues hold off determined Moana Pasifika despite Nepo Laulala red card
Four days after their historic victory over the Hurricanes, Moana Pasifika have fallen to the Blues in Super Rugby Pacific’s first Auckland derby.
Riding high on the wave of their first-ever win in their brief history on Friday, Moana Pasifika produced another gallant effort against their more favoured and more resourced cross-town neighbours.
That wasn’t enough to register back-to-back victories at Mt Smart Stadium on Tuesday, though, as the Blues emphasised their depth of class and quality after having made 14 changes to their starting lineup from Saturday’s win over the Highlanders.
Moana Pasifika initially made the same number of changes to their starting team, but they ended up fielding an entirely overhauled run-on team when second-five Henry Taefu was one of three late withdrawals shortly before kick-off.
In his place came former NRL and Brumbies star Solomone Kata for his Moana Pasifika debut, and Kata’s spot on the bench was taken by ex-Brumbies flyer Nigel Ah Wong.
Maori All Blacks veteran Joe Royal and Manu Samoa halfback Dwayne Polataivao also replaced Ray Niuia and Manu Paea on the bench, respectively, leaving Moana Pasifika with a whopping 14 debutants in their match day squad.
Such vast inexperience – combined with late disruptions, which was amplified by the early absence of captain Jack Lam due to a head injury assessment (that he passed) – left the hosts ill-equipped to deal with the might of the Blues.
Even without an array of their headline acts, leaving them with four debutants and 14 players with 10 Super Rugby caps or fewer, Leon MacDonald’s side still cut an imposing figure.
The presence of All Blacks props Alex Hodgman and Nepo Laulala in their starting team wreaked havoc with Moana Pasifika’s scrum, resulting in penalty after penalty to piggyback the Blues down the park.
Despite some committed defence, another shaky Moana Pasifika scrum after forcing a spillage out of Stephen Perofeta enabled the Blues to pounce.
Hodgman, Laulala and the entire Blues forward pack demolished their counterparts, allowing midfielder Tamati Tua latched onto the ball and score his first Super Rugby try in his second match, which came four years after his debut.
Some smart territorial play and a conscious effort to keep the ball alive and play an upbeat brand of rugby enabled the Blues to extend their lead.
Quick lineouts and persistent offloading ensured the Blues kept Moana Pasifika pegged inside their own 22, and Lincoln McClutchie struggled to relieve pressure as the Blues’ outside backs – AJ Lam, Mark Telea and Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens – continually kept their opponents on edge.
All of that culminated in an attacking opportunity in the form of a five-metre lineout, which yielded a Ricky Riccitelli try, the first of two scored by the ex-Hurricanes hooker before the half-time siren.
That put the Blues in a comfortable 19-0 lead with five minutes until the break, but Moana Pasifika cut that deficit by rolling their sleeves up and rumbling over for a try to ex-Blues rake Lutery Tolai from a close range lineout.
Their lineout proved to be the catalyst for a second half fightback, which was sparked by what appeared to be a try to Kata in the opening moments of the second stanza until officials ruled that he was held up.
Not to be deterred by that call, Moana Pasifika threw wave after wave of attack at the Blues in the minutes after Kata’s disallowed try, utilising the lineout to great effect.
Aaron Mauger’s men soon reaped their desired rewards when loosehead prop Abraham Pole crashed over for another try on debut after having scored against Moana Pasifika in his Super Rugby Pacific debut for the Crusaders three-and-a-half weeks ago.
That brought Moana Pasifika to within touching distance, and just a few minutes after that, Tolai seemed to have bagged a brace after his side again opted to attack the Blues via their lineout.
However, a review by the television match official denied Tolai his second try against his former team, much to the dismay of the boisterous home crowd.
Another attempt to roll over the tryline from the back of a maul was then quashed by the Blues, who then looked to give Moana Pasifika a taste of their own medicine by having a crack at the line from a close range lineout after hoofing the ball downfield.
Consultation from the television match official resulted in a try being awarded to stand-in Blues captain Luke Romano, giving his side some breathing room as the match headed into its final quarter.
Whatever advantage the Blues had from that try, though, evaporated almost instantly when Laulala was sent off for a reckless clean out at a ruck, where his shoulder connected with the head of Moana Pasifika centre Fine Inisi.
That indiscretion paved the way for Moana Pasifika to turn to their maul yet again, and with a penalty advantage from the ensuing rolling maul, McClutchie lofted a hit-and-hope cross-kick to Manu Samoa wing Tomasi Alosio.
The Moana Pasifika debutant soared above Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens to make a spectacular catch any NRL player who has previously graced Mt Smart Stadium would be proud of and score a superb try.
Trailing by only five points with one extra man on the park, there was a sense that Moana Pasifika knew they were on the cusp of securing the unlikeliest of successive wins.
The crowd knew it too, and that was reflected by their excitement when Moana Pasifika wing Anzelo Tuitavuki broke down the left-hand flank, only to disappoint when he was bundled into touch after failing to capitalise on a multi-man overlap.
Had he taken advantage of that numerical mismatch, the result very well could have been different, but the Blues made no mistake about consolidating their lead when handed the chance after Tuitavuki’s lapse in judgement.
A Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens line break got the Blues in a dangerous position deep inside enemy territory, and reserve halfback Finlay Christie was clinical in his effort to dot down from a matter of centimetres away.
Things began to slip away from Moana Pasifika from that point onwards, as a penalty conceded by reserve prop Chris Apoua with a handful of minutes to play gift-wrapped an easy three points for Perofeta.
That ballooned the scoreline out to gap that was too far for Moana Pasifika to bridge in the dying stages of the contest, but there is plenty for them to be pleased about.
A strong showing by much of the squad’s second-string and injury replacement players indicates there is some depth within the Moana Pasifika set-up, while the emergence of their lineout as a genuine attacking weapon is miles ahead of where they were just weeks ago.
The Blues, meanwhile, will be content to have banked an expected victory that moves them into the top four on the competition standings four days out from their rematch with Moana Pasifika at Eden Park this weekend.
Their ability to also close out the match with only 14 men on the park will also get the tick of approval from MacDonald, as will the long-awaited injury return from All Blacks prop Karl Tu’inukuafe, who featured in the final four minutes.
Blues 32 (Tries to Tamati Tua, Ricky Riccitelli (2), Luke Romano and Finlay Christie; 2 conversions and penalty to Stephen Perofeta)
Moana Pasifika 19 (Tries to Luteru Tolai, Abraham Pole and Tomasi Alosio; conversion to D’Angelo Leuila, conversion to Lincoln McClutchie)
Comments on RugbyPass
I certainly don’t miss drinking beers at 8am in the morning watching rugby games being played in NZ.
1 Go to commentsThis looks like a damage limitation exercise for Wales, keeping back some of their more effective players for the last 20/25 minutes to try and counter England’s fresh legs so the Red Roses don’t rack up a big score.
1 Go to commentsVery unlikely the Bulls will beat Leinster in Dublin. It would be different in Pretoria.
1 Go to commentsI think it is a dangerous path to go down to ban a player for the same period that a player they injured takes to recover. Players would be afraid to tackle anyone. I once tackled my best friend at school in a practice match and sprained his ankle. I paid for it by having to play fly-half instead of full-back for the rest of that season’s fixtures.
5 Go to commentsJust such a genuine good bloke…and probably the best all round player in his generation. Good guys do come first sometimes and he handled the W.Cup loss with great attitude.
2 Go to commentsWord in France is that he’s on the radar of a few Top14 clubs.
2 Go to commentsGet blocking Travis, this guy has styles and he’s gonna make a swift impact…!
1 Go to commentsWhat remorse? She claimed that her dangerous tackle wasn’t worthy of a red! She should be compensating the injured player for loss of earnings at the minimum. Her ban should include the recovery time of the injured player as well as the paltry 3 match ban.
5 Go to commentsArdie is a legend. Finished and klaar. Two things: “Yeah, yeah, I have had a few conversations with Razor just around feedback on my game and what I am doing well, what I need to improve on or work-ons. It’s kind of been minimal, mate, but it’s all that I need over here in terms of how to be better, how to get better and what I am doing well.” I hope he’s downplaying it - and that it’s not that “minimal”. The amount of communication and behind the scenes preparation the Bok coaches put into players - Rassie and co would be all over Ardie and being clear on what is expected of him. This stands out for me as something teams should really be looking at in terms of the boks success from a coaching point of view. And was surprised by the comment - “minimal”. In terms of the “debate” around Ireland and South Africa. Nice one Ardie. Indeed. There’s no debate.
2 Go to commentsThere’s a bit of depth there but realistically Australian players have a long way to go to now catch up. The game is moving on fast and Australia are falling behind. Australian sides still don’t priories the breakdown like they should, it’s a non-negotiable if you want to compete on the international stage. That goes for forwards and backs. The Australian team could have a back row that could make a difference but the problem is they don’t have a tight five that can do the business. Tupou is limited in defence, overweight and unfit and the locks are a long way from international standard. Frost is soft and Salakai-Loto is too small so that means they need a Valentini at 8 who has to do the hard graft so limits the effectiveness of the backrow. Schmidt really needs to get a hard working, tough tight 5 if he wants to get this team firing.
3 Go to commentsSorry Morgan you must have been the “go to for a quote” ex player this week. Its rnd 6 and there is plenty of time to cement a starting 15 and finishing 8 so I have no such concerns.
2 Go to commentsGreat read. I wish you had done this article on the ROAR.
2 Go to commentsThe current AB coaching team is basically the Crusaders so it smacks of wanting their familiar leaders around. This is not a good look for the future of the ABs or the younger players in Super working their way up the player ladder. Razor is touted as innovative, forward looking but his early moves look like insecurity and insular, provincial thinking. He is the AB's coach not the Golden Oldies.
10 Go to commentsSimple reason for wanting him back. Robertson wants him as captain. Otherwise he wouldn’t be bothering chasing him. Not enough reason to come back just to mentor.
10 Go to commentsI had not considered this topic like this at all, brilliant read. I had been looking at his record at the Waratahs and thought it odd the Crusaders appointed him, then couple that with all that experience and talent departing and boom. They’ve got some great talent developing though, and in all honesty I don’t think anyone would be over confident taking them on in a playoff match, no matter how poor the first half of their season was. I think they can pull a game out of their ass when it counts.
2 Go to commentsNot a bad list but not Porecki and not Donaldson. Not because they are Tahs, or Ex Tahs, they are just not good enough. Edmed should be ahead. Far more potential. Wilson should be 8 and Valentini 6. Wilson needs to be told by his father and his coach, stop bloody running in to brick wall defence. You’re not playing under the genius Thorn any more. He’s a fantastic angle runner. The young new 8 from the Brumbies looks really good too. The Lonegrans are just too small for international rugby as is Paisami, as is Hamish Stewart at 12. Both great at Super Rugby level. Stewart could have been a great 10 if not for Brad Thorn. Uru should be there and so should Tupou. Tupou just needs good Australian coaching which he hasn’t been getting. I don’t think Schmidt will excite him.
3 Go to commentsIf he wants to come back then he should. He will be a major asset to the younger locks and could easily be played as an impact player off the bench coming on in the last 30. He is fit, strong and capable and has all the experience to make up for any loss in physical prowess. He could also be brought back with a view to coaching within the structures one day. Duane Vermeulen played until he was 37 or 38. He is now a roaming coach within the South African coaching structures. He was valuable in the last world cup and has been a major influence on Jasper Wiese and other young players which has helped and accelerated their development and growth. Whitelock could do the exact same thing for NZ
10 Go to commentsBrett Excellent words… finally someone (other than DC) has noted that Hanigan is very hard and very good at doing what Backrow should do… his performance via the Drua sauna was quite daunting for those on the other side… very high tackle count… carries with good end result… constant threat to make a good 20-25 meters with those long legs… providing his mass effectively to crunching the Drua pack… Finally he is returning to quality form… way to much injury time over the last 2 years… smart-strong-competent in his skills… caught every lineout throw aimed at him and delivered clean pass to whoever was down below… and he worked hard for the whole 80 minutes… Ned has to be in the top 5 for backrow honors… He knows what is required as he has been there before…
20 Go to commentsI think Sam Whitelock should not touch a return with a bargepole. He went out on a high, playing in the RWC Final. He would be coming back into a team that will be weaker than last years, and might even be struggling to win games, especially against the Boks. Stay in France, enjoy another year with Pau, playing alongside his brother.
10 Go to commentsRyan Coxon has been very impressive considering he was signed by WF as injury cover whilst Uru has been a standout for QR, surprised neither of those mentioned
3 Go to comments