Same old story for sorry Blues as Chiefs' spark-plugs make an impressive impact
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.
“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.
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 wouldn’t spend the time on Nawaqanitawase! No point in having him filling in a jersey when he’s committed to leave Union. Give the jersey to a young prospect who will be here in the future.
4 Go to commentsIt was a pleasure to watch those guys playing with such confidence. That trio can all be infuriating for different reasons and I can see why Jones might have decided against them. No way to justify leaving Ikitau out though. Jorgensen and him were both scheduled to return at the same time. Only one of them plays for Randwick and has a dad who is great mates with the national coach though.
53 Go to commentsBrayden Iose and Peter Lakai are very exciting Super Rugby players but are too short and too light to ever be a Test 8 vs South Africa, France, Ireland, and England, Lakai could potentially be a Test player at 7 if he is allowed to focus on 7 for Hurricanes.
5 Go to commentsPencils “Thomas du Toit” into possible 2027 Bok squad.
1 Go to commentsDon’t see why Harrison makes the bench. Jones can play at 10 if needed, and there is a good case for starting her there to begin with if testing combinations. That would leave room for Sing on the bench
1 Go to commentsWhat a load of old bull!
1 Go to commentsOf the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.
29 Go to commentsIrish Rugby CEO be texting Andy Farrell “Andy, i found our next Kiwi Irishman”
5 Go to commentsI 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.
5 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.
4 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 comments