The Waratahs are confident there is enough time to salvage their fading finals hopes after slipping to a fourth consecutive defeat on Friday night at Allianz Stadium – this time going down to a determined Rebels outfit 27-21.
But standing in the way of playoffs for NSW are mounting injury problems, a lack of clear insight into the team’s weak points and a brutal month ahead on the fixture list.
In what can only be described as a desperately ugly game of footy, the Waratahs were left holding a losing bonus point for the fourth straight week after the Rebels powered home and over the top of the hosts in the second half.
Instant impact from Tupou
After a forgettable first-half from both sides, the Rebels were boosted by the entry of Taniela Tupou from the bench, who won some timely scrum penalties and a burrowing try, which saw them take an eight-point lead with six minutes to go.
A late try to NSW’s Jack Grant gave the Tahs a sniff with a few minutes on the clock, but they botched the re-start and ended up conceding a five-metre scrum. Filipo Daugunu scored as the siren sounded to give NSW another close loss, coming after three weeks of defeats by two points or fewer.
“It’s getting a bit repetitive now, isn’t it? Finding ourselves within the game and then we score a nice try and then stuff up the kickoff,” captain Jake Gordon said. “We need to find ways to improve in those areas because we are putting oursleves in positions to compete but we are not finishing them.”
Labelling it the toughest defeat of his three years with the Tahs, coach Darren Coleman apologised to fans. “Just the accumulation of the last three weeks, that one hurt even more because I don’t think we played well. You can cop other ones because there were some good patches in there,” Coleman said. “That’s on me. I am in the one in charge of the group and know what to do at certain times there, and there were times there they didn’t know what they looked like they knew to do. That’s 100 per cent on me. I have to educate them and put them in those scenarios, and be more clinical.”
Poor discipline hurt the Tahs
The Waratahs’ discipline was poor – they lost the penalty count 14-5 - and in a game that had fans slapping their foreheads at the mistakes, a comical moment where reserve lock Miles Amatosero missed the ball with his foot when trying to tap and charge at the line summed up the calamity.
The Waratahs’ forward depth was exposed after losing Angus Bell, Charlie Gamble and Ned Hanigan, and 19-year-old Jack Barrett – who played colts last year – was called up for his Super Rugby debut. With four props now injured, the Tahs are also now likely to lose hooker Mahe Vailanu with a knee injury and Dave Porecki is still out with an Achilles injury.
Even if Coleman wanted to make changes to try and nail some wins, he admitted he doesn’t have any scope to do it in the forwards. “It’s always the way. Injuries come in bunches. We have every one of our 17 backs fit and available. Our forwards are copping it. But That’s no excuse,” he said.
Coleman said banking four bonus points in the last four weeks was a small positive, and said the nature of the Super Rugby finals system – where a top eight of 12 teams goes through – meant they were still in the hunt. But the next four rounds see the Waratahs play the Brumbies, the Crusaders, the Chiefs and the Hurricanes – it doesn’t get any easier.
Triumph over adversity
The Rebels were wearing big smiles after their win and it was fitting that Filipo Daugunu not only scored the match-sealing try, but helped set one up earlier with a barnstorming run. Under immense pressure with off-field distractions around their club’s ongoing existence, coaching staff told players they wanted an environment where players and staff all supported each other, no matter what decisions they would make about their respective futures.
That was put to the test when Daugunu withdrew late from the Rebels team to play the Reds, due to the stress of a $7000 debt he was owed by the club. He came back to training after two days but missed a second game against the Hurricanes, and the Rebels shipped 50 points in two losses. “It is awesome to have Filipo back. He came back into training and that’s all settling down now,” Rebels coach Kevin Foote said. “It is a different time for these guys. When he came in, I was a bit nervous what the reaction of the guys would be and the guys were clapping for him. And he had his big Filipo smile and we got on with it. He can take away that distraction now. He is a good man.”
Amid constant headlines about their club’s future, and their playing careers, captain Rob Leota said the club’s spirit was evident in beating the Tahs. “We are all human, it is fine to feel how you’re feeling ... whether you’re feeling down. We go through ups and downs all the time,” he said. “It is just life. At the end of the day, we are doing something we love as a living.”
There have been many question marks about Taniela Tupou in recent weeks: is he fit? Will he stay in Australian rugby or go to Ireland or France? Is he even worth $1.2 million a season? He went some way – not all, but some – to answering those questions with a dominant second-half display off the bench against the Tahs. He was powerful in the scrum, busy in general play and scored a try, and was one of the big points of difference for the Rebels against an undermanned Tahs pack. “Taniela, when it comes to scrum ... he is in a league of his own. He can absolutely smash it,” Foote said.