In a result that if it were the 5th at Randwick the stewards would be called in, the Force touched up the Rebels in Perth this evening.
The Match
It’s hard to believe that a team so thoroughly outclassed by the Brumbies last weekend was able to improve by as much as they did and have the game all but over 20 minutes in. All this too, against a team who gave the Cheetahs a bit of a towelling last week.
There was dynamism in the forwards, straight running, support play and a willingness to take the game on that has been missing so far this season. I don’t know what Foley said (or didn’t) to the squad this week, but that first half of footy was just about the best I’ve ever seen the local boys play in several years. It was like the shackles had come off and they had decided to throw any thoughts of conservatism to the wind. Why they don’t play like this more escapes most people who watch them regularly.
The first Force try came from some great lead up work by the pack. They executed a catch and drive from a lineout and slowly but surely rumbled a maul towards the Rebels goal line. A penalty created an opportunity for a snipe from the quick tap for Alby Mathewson and he went over untouched. A second try came a few minutes later to Luke Morahan after the Force kick-chase worried Tom Kingston off the ball and simple hands had him over in the corner. It was 14-0 before anyone realised what was going on.
The damage to the visitors score sheet didn’t end there though. The captain and hundred gamer was on the end of more good chase pressure and crashed over to make an improbable early lead start to look pretty imposing. It was just like last week, but in reverse. A fourth try to Angus Cotterell effectively put the game beyond doubt and the bonus point was secured within about 30 minutes.
It’s hard to convey how much the home team were dominating at this point. I can scarcely recall any Rebels attacking foray into the Force twenty-two until just before half time or frankly any field position or possession of note. They just couldn’t get their hands on the pill and any they tried to secure at the break down was drawing the ire of the referee. The Force went into the half time break 32-0 up and the game was over as a contest.
In another parallel to last week, the second half wasn’t a great exhibition of rugby football and showcased mainly handling errors and penalties at the breakdown. The Rebels were trying to chase the game and as a result made errors and the Force went off the boil. It wasn’t until the last 10 minutes that the Rebels seriously threatened the goal line and they got a very late consolation try. The Force will be a bit dirty about that, because it looked for all money that they would shut the Rebels out, even when not playing that well in the second half. They also abandoned, to a degree, the game plan that had gotten them into a winning position in the first place and kicked a lot more out of hand than they should have.
What really struck me about tonights game was how home side addressed every shortcoming from last week. The set piece was solid, especially the lineout. There was counter rucking at the break down and mostly quick ball to the backs. There was also purposeful, straight running and none of the hesitation into contact that we saw last week. Trailing runners were ready to receive offloads and keep half breaks going, which led directly to at least two of the four tries. The most noticeable thing, however, was the attitude of the chase and defensive line. They constantly harassed and suffocated the Rebels attack, which like the Force of last week, was static and lateral.
The Rebels looked nothing like the team that towelled up the Cheetahs last week and had carried some excellent pre-season form into the comp. A lot was made during the week of the significant rotations Tony McGahan made with the team, but it clearly didn’t work. There’s an old adage in team sport that you don’t flirt with your form and you don’t change a winning combination if you don’t have to. I’m sure he had his reasons, but I’ll be interested to see if he approaches subsequent games the way he did this one. There are no easy matches in this competition.
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The Game Changer
Like last week, that opening gambit from the Force when they applied the blowtorch to the Rebels pack and scored. They grew an extra leg after that.
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The G&GR MotM
Plenty of contributors tonight from the winning side, but I thought Jayden Hayward provided plenty of spark from fullback and big Gus Cotterell was as good as any forward on the park.
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Wallaby watch
I watched Scott Higginbotham with particular interest and he was a mixed bag, to be frank. Some strong running but also some penalties and niggle. What I thought was a really good battle was Godwin v Inman at 12. Both guys are players on the rise and could wear gold in the future.
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The Details
Force: 32 (Mathewson, Morahan, Hodgson, Cotterell tries; Ebersohn 3 cons; Ebersohn 2 pens) defeated Rebels: 7 (Veainu try; Hegarty con)
Yellow cards: None
Refereee: Nick Briant
