The Waratahs have defeated the Blues 23-11 at Allianz Stadium.
The Waratahs were made to work for the victory after a solid defensive performance from the Blues but the Waratahs dominated the scrum and finished well to secure the win.
The Match
The Waratahs began the match strongly as an early opportunity went begging when Israel Folau made a break and then an error was made by Matt Carraro.
Moments later Benn Robinson was held up over the line after another good play by the Waratahs.
The Waratahs finally converted an opportunity after a beautiful set play move sent Michael Hooper through a gap who then linked up with Nick Phipps to score the Waratahs first try under the points. Foley added the extras to give the Waratahs the early lead 7-0.
The Blues were unable to penetrate the strong Waratahs defence which shut out the Blues exciting attacking threats. An infringement by Tolu Latu then gave the Blues a penalty to get on the board. 7-3 after 13 minutes.
Another try then went begging for the Waratahs after it was found Israel Folau had lost the ball forward.
A penalty to the Blues right in front allowed Bowden to keep in touch with the Waratahs. 7-6 after 23 minutes.
Poor discipline from the Waratahs gave the Blues good possession after Wycliff Palu was found guilty of a high tackle. The Blues had the opportunity to go in front after another penalty but Bowden missed from out wide.
A great attacking play from the Waratahs provided them with a great opportunity but yet again another Folau knock on denied Rob Horne a try.
The score was 7-6 at halftime as the Blues escaped a series of good Waratahs scrums on the Blues line.
The second half began where the first half left off with the Waratahs given a great attacking opportunity only for the Blues to be let off by a knock on from Kurtley Beale.
A good build up from the Blues put Francis Saili over the line in a rare attacking opportunity for the Blues. Bowden could not add the extras to bring the score to 7-11 after 55 minutes.
Directly after the kick off the Waratahs were awarded a penalty and Foley narrowed the gap to 10-11.
The Waratahs regained the lead after another Foley penalty. 13-11 after 61 minutes.
A series of infringements from the Blues allowed Foley to extend the Waratahs lead with another penalty.
A huge hit from Jerome Kaino on Dave Dennis resulted in a controversial yellow card to the Blues. Kurtley Beale missed the penalty from the incident.
The next play saw some slick hands from the Waratahs to send Peter Betham over the line. Foley brought the score to 23-11 with 5 minutes to go.
Final Score: 23-11.
[one_third last=”no”]
The Game Changer
The match was in the balance until Peter Betham’s try to seal the match in the 75th minute. [/one_third]
[one_third last=”no”]
The G&GR MOTM
Michael Hooper was everywhere as usual but had a particularly good game in defence which was crucial for the Waratahs. [/one_third]
[one_third last=”yes”]
Wallaby watch
Matt Carraro and Rob Horne had solid games out wide. Will Skelton had another dominant performance, winning the contact the majority of the time whilst Sekope Kepu also had a good game with a powerful scrum and strong general play. [/one_third]
The Details
Crowd: 16,342
Score & Scorers
[one_half last=”no”] Waratahs 23
Tries: Phipps, Betham
Conversions: Foley 2
Penalties: Foley 3 [/one_half]
[one_half last=”yes”] Blues 11
Tries: Saili
Conversions:
Penalties: Bowden 2 [/one_half]
Cards & citings
Yellow Card: Jerome Kaino
