Brumbies player ratings vs Blues | Super Rugby Pacific
The Brumbies came within a charged-down drop goal of causing a massive upset at Eden Park on Saturday night, narrowly losing out 19-20 against the Blues in the second Super Rugby Pacific semi-final.
The away team certainly didn’t have history on their side heading into the contest, with no Australian team recording a play-off win in 19 attempts over two and a half decades. Still, they came out of the blocks firing, scoring the first try of the match throughout inside centre Irae Simone.
The Blues took control of the game from that point on, however, scoring the next 20 points to give the Brumbies a massive task heading into the second half. The Australians rose to the challenge, with some exceptional performances off the bench, and fought their way back to within one point with time almost up on the clock.
In what was effectively the last play of the game, Brumbies flyhalf Noah Lolesio attempted a drop goal from 40 metres out but Blues prop Ofa Tuungafasi managed to block the kick, ending the Brumbies’ hopes of an historic victory.
Who were the best performers for the Brumbies in defeat?
1. James Slipper 4/10
Pinged three times in the first half for illegal scrummaging and once early in the second spell for sealing off the ruck – although any number of Brumbies could have been penalised. Off in 47th minute.
2. Folau Fainga’a – 6
Came close to scoring after breaking away from a rolling maul with the Brumbies’ first attacking foray into the Blues 22. Lots of endeavour but struggled to generate much go-forward with the ball in hand. Hit his target on five of his six lineout deliveries. Off in 53rd minute.
3. Allan Alaalatoa – 5
Off in 68th minute. The Brumbies campatain held up his side of the scrum well and kept his team motivated heading into the late stages of the match.
4. Darcy Swain – 4
Strong at the lineout, taking all five of his deliveries, but let his side down with some awful discipline and less than accurate defence. Penalised three times in the first half, once for not rolling away after the tackle, once for playing Josh Goodhue in the air at the lineout, and once for collapsing a maul. Copped another costly one with seven minutes remaining for getting offside at the breakdown when the Blues were camped on their goal line.
5. Cadeyrn Neville – 4
Had little to show for his time on the field. A poor pick-and-go attempt on the Blues’ try line resulted in the ball being held up and otherwise faded into the background. Off in 47th minute.
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6. Tom Hooper – N/A
Injured his shoulder with his first carry and then dropped the ball the next time it came his way. Unsurprisingly left the field immediately after, in the 17th minute.
7. Pete Samu – 6.5
The Brumbies’ top tackler with 10 to his name. Rarely had momentum on his side when hitting the ball up but always took at least a couple of tacklers to bring him to ground. Came close to grabbing a late try with a good run up the guts.
8. Rob Valetini – 4
It was a somewhat disappointing return to the field for Valetini with the big number 8 relatively anonymous. Touched the ball just four times and made six tackles before departing at half time.
9. Nic White – 5
It wasn’t a vintage game from the senior halfback with some scrappy play throughout. Caught napping twice at the breakdown in the first half. In both instances, he needed more support from his forwards, but still could have gotten the ball away if he’d hustled. Might have spent too much time chatting with the referee. Off in 53rd minute.
10. Noah Lolesio – 3.5
Looked good when he challenged the line but his skills regularly let him down. Couldn’t quite take an early high ball but somehow it worked out in the Brumbies’ favour, with the Blues knocking it on while trying to reclaim the bouncing ball. Missed three tackles in the lead-up to the Blues’ first try, on Rieko Ioane, Beauden Barrett and Hoskins Sotutu, and then two in the build-up to the Blues’ second, on Roger Tuivasa-Sheck and Barrett again. Was guilty of some inaccurate kicking early in the second half and threw some dicey passes.
11. Andy Muirhead – 7
Strong under the high ball, both on attack and defence. Made one great scything run in the second half. Jumped in to assist with lineout mauls.
12. Irae Simone – 7
Made an exceptional break from the first scrum, going straight throughout Stephen Perofeta, then managed to get on the outside of Beauden Barrett and dive over the line for a brilliant individual effort. Threw one inaccurate pass when the Brumbies were hot on attack. Added his weight to the late-game lineout drives.
13. Ollie Sapsford – 4
A good chase following the kick-off helped earned the Brumbies possession back after conceding their second try. Couldn’t bring down AJ Lam in the tackle at the beginning of the final quarter, with the Blues almost scoring from the ensuing momentum. Off in 68th minute.
14. Tom Wright – 6
Held up with his first carry of the ball. Stepped his way around a few tackles in the second half and was then dumped on his head. Came within inches of grabbing a try in the 58th minute after busting through the line but couldn’t get the ball down. Returned the favour minutes later, however, when he somehow managed to keep Barrett from grabbing a try of his own.
15. Tom Banks – 5
Generally safe at the back. Almost missed touch with his first penalty but Lam couldn’t quite rein the ball in. Ran a nice support line off Muirhead to put the Blues under pressure but could have looked to give the ball to his outside man, instead being bundled into touch.
Reserves:
16. Lachlan Lonergan – 8.5
On in 53rd minute. Scored twice from driving mauls – his sixth and seventh meat pies of the season – and ran with vigour. Added massive impact off the bench and will have done his Wallabies chances a world of good.
17. Scott Sio – 4
On in 47th minute. Wasn’t any luckier at scrum time than the man he replaced (except when the Blues scrum engaged early).
18. Sosefo Kautai – 6
On in 68th minute. Grabbed a breakdown penalty with his first act off the bench.
19. Nick Frost – 6.5
On in 47th minute. Became the key man at the lineout when he joined the match and was safe as houses when the Brumbies were bombarding the Blues with driving mauls. Grabbed an important lineout steal with just six minutes left to play.
20. Luke Reimer – 8
On in 17th minute. Grabbed three breakdown turnovers and powered through plenty of work on both sides of the ball, finishing as the Brumbies’ second biggest tackler. Dropped the ball clean when the Brumbies were hot on attack at the 30-minute mark and was then gassed on the outside by Ioane when the Blues broke out from their own half (but who could blame him?) but was still one of the biggest performers on the night.
21. Jahrome Brown
On in 40th minute. Carried well and added a bit more impetus than Valetini.
22. Ryan Longergan – 5
On in 53rd minute. Passing and kicking – the bread and butter of a halfback’s repertoire – wasn’t quite on the mark.
23. Hudson Creighton – N/A
On in 68th minute.
Comments on RugbyPass
“But with an exceptional pass accuracy rating “ Which apart from Roigard is not a feature of any of the other 9s in NZ. Kind of basic for a Black 9 dont.you. think? Yet we keep seeing FC and TJ being rated ahead of him? Weird if it’s seen as vital to get our backline beating in your face defences.
1 Go to commentsThanks BeeMc! Looks like many teams need extra time to settle from the quadrennial northern migration. I think generally the quality of the Rugby has held up. Fiji has been fantastic and fun to watch
13 Go to commentsLets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
11 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
9 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
11 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
24 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
9 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
35 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
35 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
17 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
5 Go to comments