It was a tight first 40 where the Rebels were on a roll with back-to-back tries for a start, but then a mix of missed TRY finishes to try & extend their winning margin saw the Waratahs catch up to them that hit really hard before the Melbourne-based side narrowly held the lead ahead of half-time, 14-17, courtesy of a penalty goal. Going into the 2nd half, however, the game easily belongs to the Waratahs, while the Rebels continued to suffer with not just their poor finishing but also the line-outs & discipline as well. The final score at Allianz Stadium was 38-20.
Hard luck to the Melbourne Rebels with the loss there, having fell so short by seven-points against the Brumbies at AAMI Park last Sunday. They fired off really well with back-to-back tries while trying to stay in the fight through some three-point penalty goals. However, their display was largely disappointing when not only the line-outs were bad, but also their messy finishing where the game could’ve easily been theirs if the Rebels successfully added another 2-3 tries along the way. It’s just a shame they couldn’t capitalise on these missed opportunities before it gets worse & worse with the ill-discipline, and it’s something they couldn’t recover ever since. They will now be flying over to Dunedin, NZ where the Rebels continue to fight for the 8th Playoffs spot next Saturday v Highlanders.
Meanwhile, it’s great to see the Waratahs end up with three straight wins now on what has been a wonderful night in front of their supporters at Allianz Stadium (Moore Park). Now they may have been disadvantaged from the beginning but boy they showed so much fightback along the way. The credit comes from the Rebels poor line-outs, ill-discipline & missed TRY opportunities where the Tahs made up some lost time going into half-time before they were unstoppable on the run home with a comfortable win. Such a brilliant show where they are in a good position now to secure another year in the Final Playoffs at 6th right now thanks to Head Coach Darren Coleman. But first, they still got three games left with the Fijian Drua next up – who is not far from the Top 8 bubble in 9th right now behind Western Force – also on a Saturday night at home.
