Chiefs expose Waratahs’ flaws in harsh Hamilton defeat
The Waratahs’ stay in the New Zealand graveyard of Super Rugby has been extended. NSW’s 28-point loss to the Chiefs in Hamilton made it their 11th loss in a row across the Tasman.
Waikato Stadium in Hamilton presents one of the toughest challenges in Super Rugby for visiting teams. They are greeted by an ultra-physical pack and incessant cow bells from the crowd. It will relentlessly shine a spotlight on errors and it beamed brightly on NSW. The Waratahs couldn’t deal with an immensely physical Chiefs pack or hold on to the football when it mattered.
NSW fullback Sid Harvey has been outstanding in his previous four Super Rugby games, including last Saturday’s victory over the Brumbies, and it is a mark of the 20-year-old’s talent that his worst game so far this season against the Chiefs still included a well-taken try and two conversions.
On Wednesday, it was confirmed that Harvey had signed with the Waratahs for another two years after demonstrating brilliant early season form. On Saturday night in Hamilton, Harvey showed he is still a young man learning his trade, which cannot be an extended highlight reel.
Harvey showed enough composure to improve his performance in the second half, with his team physically dominated, riven with handling errors and the NSW bench emptied.
If failure is a greater teacher than success, Harvey’s outing in Hamilton will have provided a valuable lesson for one of Australian rugby’s most exciting talents.
Harvey was guilty of five turnovers and misjudged a well-timed grubber kick from Chiefs halfback Xavier Roe, leaving winger Kyren Taumoefolau to score the home side’s first try after eight minutes.
Harvey almost immediately had a chance to respond for the Waratahs, but his forward pass to No.8 Pete Samu deprived the visitors of a potential try-scoring opportunity.
NSW struggled to hold on to the football throughout the opening stages of a game that was played in dry conditions in Hamilton. The Waratahs’ lack of discipline also invited increasing pressure from the Chiefs that would prove difficult to hold out.
Max Jorgensen did brilliantly to stop Emoni Narawa from scoring a certain try after sprinting from the midfield to tackle the winger, but there was a ready sense that this was delaying the inevitable.
The inevitable came in the shape of Chiefs hooker Samisoni Taukei’aho who scored the Chiefs’ second try after waves of bruising carries close to the Waratahs line. The hooker was also at the centre of an immense scrummaging unit that strained a NSW front row that had been one of the bright spots of a mixed season.
No other team in Super Rugby plays with as much width as the Waratahs and it was fitting that a long pass from Jorgensen to Harvey gave the fullback the first try of his professional career. Harvey followed it with a tricky conversion from the left sideline.
The Chiefs responded with a try through All Black centre Quinn Tupaea who broke through the Waratahs, bouncing Harvey off his shoulder and then scrambling over to score. Minutes later, Harvey tried to tidy up a kick, was swallowed in a ruck, leading to a simple penalty to extend the Chiefs’ lead to 16 points at half-time.
The Waratahs brought on their former captain Jake Gordon to bring some leadership at halfback but it wasn’t enough to steady a side that looked overwhelmed physically.
Tupaea scored his second try for the Chiefs, demonstrating why he is leading the votes for Super Rugby player of the year.
Despite the immense defensive efforts from breakaway Charlie Gamble, the Chiefs were finding space against an exhausted opposition and Samipeni Finau’s try extended the lead to 30 points.
NSW No.8 Pete Samu got a consolation try for his team after a charging run from former Taniela Tupou protege and replacement tighthead prop Siosifa Amone. The Waratahs kept trying to attack late in the game, but a fumble from centre Triston Reilly gifted Taumoefolau his second try.
NSW will have a week’s break thanks to a bye before returning with a home game against Moana Pasifika.
A heavy defeat against the Chiefs in New Zealand is nothing new for visiting Waratahs teams, but for a team that is desperate to make the finals, it provides a stiff reality check.