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Same old story for sorry Blues as Chiefs' spark-plugs make an impressive impact
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The Blues have contrived to do the near impossible and lose games they should never have many times over the past decade or so and, at the start of a new one at a very warm and expectant Eden Park, they have done so once again.
This one to the Chiefs was an extraordinary effort, and while Warren Gatland’s men were bolstered significantly by the second-half interventions of reserves Aaron Cruden, Anton Lienert-Brown, Brad Weber and Pita Gus Sowakula, the home side’s 19-5 halftime lead should have been defended far more stoutly than it was.
“We were obviously pretty optimistic at halftime – we played well, we dominated possession and I thought our defence looked pretty rugged at halftime so there was a lot to smile about going into the sheds,” Blues coach Leon MacDonald said afterwards.
“I thought they played particularly well (in second half) – the impact off the bench, Cruden in particular, was outstanding,” he said of the Chiefs. “You could see the old wise head take control and on the flip side of that our error rate was too high which kept feeding them opportunities.”
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The Blues appeared completely in control at the break. Rieko Ioane scored two typically blockbusting tries on the occasion of his 50th game, the Blues’ scrum was dominant, defensively they were excellent and the Chiefs, expected to be competition front-runners this season, were strangely absent on attack and defence – they missed 20 tackles in the first half alone.
And yet, the visitors’ comeback was quick and brutal, a true turnaround which reaped a total of 32 second-half points, and it was helped immensely by the introduction of their returning first-five Cruden who coolly organised their attack, dropped a goal in the final moments to extend his team’s margin to seven points and kicked a penalty after the siren to deny the Blues a losing bonus point.
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“I thought he was really good,” Gatland said of former All Black Cruden, “but I thought [No10] Kaleb Trask did a really good job for us. He played well but didn’t get a huge amount of opportunities because we were shooting ourselves in the foot in the first half with mistakes and turnovers, and the Blues were pretty good.
“The message at halftime was to be more decisive, carry well, and be more accurate with the ball. We were much better in the second half.”
Ioane, his milestone recognised on the field afterwards, said: “Our first half was awesome. The point of difference was their bench. They had a lot of experience to come on and really give it to us. With Cruds and Anton leading the charge they had some cool, calm heads and were able to get there.”
The Blues’ lead was quickly wiped out after the break as their previously near impenetrable defence sprang leaks all over the place and their belief went in the same direction. Those home fans wishing for a new narrative from their side this year would have gone home sorely disappointed.
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Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi was firmly entrenched as the @AllBlacks' third halfback in 2018 then everything went south a year later. Triple T spoke to @TomVinicombe ahead of the new #SuperRugby season. https://t.co/pYyY5iVRGn @ChiefsRugby
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) January 30, 2020
The Chiefs were hamstrung by the departure after 20 minutes of tighthead prop Nepo Laulala, the All Black down three times due to a knee injury and his final act was to give up a penalty.
Unfortunately for the Blues, Alex Hodgman who also gave Laulala’s replacement Angus Ta’avao a torrid time in the first half, left the field with his own knee problem which MacDonald thought could be serious.
Ioane, replaced after 55 minutes, try-scoring flanker Tony Lamborn, wing Mark Telea and No 8 Hoskins Sotutu enjoyed bright moments for the Blues which may please MacDonald but unfortunately for him and his team there were not enough, especially during what for them was a dark second half. New season, same old story.
“It’s disappointing given the position we played our way into,” MacDonald said.
Chiefs 37 (Samisoni Taukeiaho 2, Pita Gus Sowakula, Aidan Ross, Solomon Alaimalo tries; Aaron Cruden 3 cons, dropped goal, pen)
Blues 29 (Rieko Ioane 2, Tony Lamborn, Karl Tu’inukuafe tries; Stephen Perofeta 3 cons, Harry Plummer pen)
Halftime: 5-19
This article first appeared on nzherald.co.nz and is republished with permission.
The sixth and final side in Global Rapid Rugby’s inaugural season has been named:
Comments on RugbyPass
I hope Leinster’s proud of themselves fielding a poor team. They should decide if they’re all in or not.
1 Go to commentsJordie is looking at 16 games maximum if Leinster reach both the URC and champions cup finals. Thats not guaranteed. Some of those home URC fixtures will be cakewalks as well for Leinster and there is not much doing during the 6 nations in Feb and March so he can probably get a decent rest then. He will have to really put in it for maybe 7 or 8 games max. It should be a good move for both.
13 Go to commentsThe game was a quarter final, not a semi final. Barrett will be here for 6 months, he is no one's replacement at 13. That mantle will most likely ultimately go to Jamie Osborne, though Garry Ringrose has at least 4 more years in him. The long term problem position (in the next 3 years) for Leinster is tighthead prop, though there are a couple of prospects at schools level.
23 Go to commentsSo much for all that hype surrounding the ‘revival’ of Aussie rugby. The Blues were without the likes of regular starters Perofeta, Sullivan, Christie etc… This was a capitulation of the highest order by Australia’s finest. Joe Schmidt definitely has his work cut out for him.
2 Go to commentsYes they can ignore Sotutu. Like Akira Ioane plays OK at Super level but gets lost in tests. Too many chances too many failures.
2 Go to commentsA wallaby front-row of Bell, Blake and Tupou…now that would be hefty
1 Go to comments“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?
13 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.
10 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.
13 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
6 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.
25 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
6 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.
10 Go to comments