Can the Waratahs win the Super 14 title? Of course …
Columnist
By Spiro Zavos, 26 May 2008 Spiro Zavos is a Roar Expert
Can the Waratahs win the Super 14 title? Of course. Will they defeat a brilliant Crusaders team (emphasis on ‘team’) that blew away a strong Hurricanes side in their semi-final? That is what we are having the final at Christchurch to find out.
A telling statistic, perhaps, is that the Crusaders win virtually every one of their home matches (31 out of the last 34 or some statistic like that).
The Waratahs were also the beneficiary of the home ground advantage at their fortress, the SFS. The helicopter bringing in Tah Man before the semi-final aroused the roaring of the crowd and provoked a standing ovation for the Waratahs as they trotted on to the field.
By way of contrast, the last time the Waratahs played a finals match at Christchurch, they played as if they were petrified about running the ball, and looked as if they were playing not to lose by too many points, rather than trying to win the match.
To defeat the Crusaders at Christchurch, even though the crowd will be small (25,000 at the most) because a new stand is being built, the visitors have to defeat the formidable home side, and also their own fears of failure.
In the press box before the NSW Waratahs – Sharks semi-final at the SFS most of the journalists were watching the first semi-final at Christchurch on a big screen with growing awe.
At one point, a journalist called out: ‘The Crusaders are bad for rugby.’ When several of us suggested that they played beautiful, correct and simple rugby, in other words, real rugby, the journalist acknowledged that he was indulging in gallows humour. ‘They’re bad for rugby because … they’re too good.’
I had some misgivings about the Waratahs before kick-off. Would their bubble burst? Would they get their finals wobbles? Would all the talk about who was going to coach next season affect the team? Would they go into their shell as they have in previous finals matches?
The Sharks, too, had been promising all week to leave nothing out on the field. They were going to give the match everything their coach, Dick Muir, a tough campaigner as a player and a successful coach who is moving on to the Springboks, told the media. The Sharks, too, were one of only four teams that has managed an away semi-final win, way back in the first year of Super Rugby against the Queensland Reds in 1996.
The first hit ups gave me the clue though that it was going to be the Waratahs night. They took the kick-off and immediately moved the ball confidently and surely across their posts in two sweeping movements to outside the 22.
I didn’t like the way, though, that Kurtley Beale then positioned himself deep in the pocket and kicked an up-and-under that gave the Sharks possession of the ball near the halfway mark.
However the Waratahs defence machine coped easily with the Sharks attacks, a factor that applied throughout the match. Take a bow Les Kiss, defensive coach. Even when they scored at the end of the match with a meaningless try, the Sharks never really ‘looked’ like scoring tries.
Every now and again in the match Beale went back into the pocket, as he did earlier in the season, and kicked away ball that should have been passed on. At one point late in the first half, when the youngster did this a couple of times, someone in the crowd, clearly exasperated, yelled out: ‘Pass it Beale!.’
Quite right, too. When Beale got his passing game going he was putting Rocky Elsom into gaps, virtually at will. The most memorable moments in the match were when the burly Elsom, ‘Rocky Awesome’ in my view, powered his way through the Sharks defences, all shoulders and pumping thighs, a terrible sight for Sharks supporters and a thing of rough, tough beauty for Waratahs supporters.
What I noticed from the early exchanges was that the Waratahs were getting over the advantage line easily. The Sharks though could not make any dents in the Waratahs defensive line. My mantra in these matters is that in rugby the team that wins the advantage line battle (a bit like the league team that wins the ruck area battle) almost always wins the match. The Waratahs were going forward in the tackle: the Sharks were being driven back.
The other great advantage the Waratahs had was that their lineout totally dominated the Sharks lineout, winning four catches against the throw (or against the head, as Murray Mexted once famously remarked).
If this dominance can be maintained against the Crusaders, who don’t have a tall lineout, then the Waratahs will be able to nullify the suffocating pressure the Crusaders like to impose on their opponents.
After 12 minutes of play the Waratahs won a penalty which was near the sideline and about 40m out. The kick was on Kurtley Beale’s right side to curve the ball into the posts. I wrote in my notebook: ‘A moment of truth. Can Kurtley’s kicking stand up to the pressure of a big match?’ He missed this kick and several others but kicked a conversion, a penalty and a drop goal. The drop goal was nicely taken because it put the Waratahs more that two converted tries in front, with about 10 minutes to play.
Down at Christchurch – rather ominously – Daniel Carter kicked seven goals from seven attempts. He also played like the best player in the world making breaks, setting up tries, kicking high at the right times and tackling like a breakaway.
There aren’t as many penalty attempts under the ELVs as with the ‘old’ laws. This makes each penalty kick more important than it might have been in the more plentiful past. The Crusaders and the Hurricanes scored three tries each. But Carter converted the pressure of 33 minutes inside the Hurricanes 22 into points each time he got the chance.
Beale will have to do the same thing, one feels, if the Waratahs are to prevail next week. But is he capable of kicking to this high standard?
Can the Waratahs win the Super 14 title, then? Of course. If they bring their attacking game to Christchurch, running with the ball in hand hard and straight and putting on their now trade mark smash-them tackling, they could do a Highlanders to the Crusaders.
But, and this is the key, they have to play to win, something they’ve not tried in the past at Christchurch.
Factbox ahead of the Super 14 final between the Crusaders and NSW Waratahs at AMI Stadium, Christchuch on Saturday (kick-off 5.35pm AEST):
CRUSADERS (NZL)
Coach: Robbie Deans
Best Super 12/14 results:
Champions 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2005, 2006; runners-up 2003, 2004; semi-finalists 20072007 finish: semi-finalists
2008 minor premiership: 1st, 52pts (won 11, lost 2; 369 pts for, 176 pts against; 8 bonus pts)NSW WARATAHS (AUS)
Coach: Ewen McKenzie
Best Super 12/14 results: runners-up 2005; semi-finalists 2002, 2006
2007 finish: 13th
2008 minor premiership: 2nd, 43pts (won 9, drew 1, lost 3; 255 pts for, 186 pts against; 5 bonus pts)HEAD TO HEAD
Last meeting: Crusaders 34-7 in Christchurch, round 6, 2008
Overall head-to-head:
Crusaders 10 Waratahs 4
In Christchurch: Crusaders 7 Waratahs 1Season-by-season:
1996 Crusaders 21 Waratahs 16 (Christchurch).
1997 Waratahs 25 Crusaders 8 (Sydney).
1998 Crusaders 33 Waratahs 12 (Christchurch).
1999 Waratahs 22 Crusaders 38 (Sydney)..
2000 Crusaders 22 Waratahs 13 (Christchurch).
2001 Waratahs 25 Crusaders 22 (Sydney).
2002 Crusaders 96 Waratahs 19 (Christchurch).
2003 Waratahs 34 Crusaders 31 (Sydney).
2004 Crusaders 19 Waratahs 43 (Christchurch).
2005 Waratahs 27 Crusaders 33 (Sydney).
2005 (final) Crusaders 35 Waratahs 25 (Christchurch).
2006 Crusaders 17 Waratahs 11 (Christchurch).
2007 Waratahs 33 Crusaders 34 (Sydney).
2008 Crusaders 34 Waratahs 7 (Christchurch).
Enjoy sports? Enjoy a bargain? All Sports Online has your favourite sporting brands at up to 70% off. Online only, premium quality sporting goods and merchandise at discounted prices. Get a deal now.
Do you have what it takes to become a sports writer? Write for the roar
Rugby Union articles
- Will Super Rugby crowds continue their slide? (201)
- Will South African rugby force a Super 21 by 2018? (173)
- The real story of how John O’Neill turned Manchester City down (70)
- Dan Parks and the unsolved questions of expat rugby (65)
- Australian teams at Super disadvantage (58)
- Pocock set to be named new Force skipper (56)
- Can the ‘Tahs win the battle after losing the Waugh? (51)
- France turns to Parra and Trinh-Duc
- Rebels look to lift for formidable Blues in rugby trial
- Mr Fix-It Lucas wants to nail down No.10
- Force roost loses ‘Mother Hen’ Sharpe
- Victory beat Mariners with Kewell winner
- Waratahs romp to 83-5 trial win over Samoa A
- Quade Cooper’s return to the Reds goes up a gear
- Wales show Southern Hemisphere how to play running rugby (29)
- What opening matches of Six Nations taught us (19)
- Will Super Rugby crowds continue their slide? (201)
- Clinical Chiefs cost rusty Rebels in Corio (9)
- Six Nations shows rugby is a parochial game at heart (5)
- Goose’s Super Rugby up-and-comer XV for 2012 (29)
- What does the future hold for the Six Nations (50)
- Explore:
LeftArmSpinner said | May 26th 2008 @ 9:22am | Report comment
Spiro, Of course, I would like the Tahs to win by any means possible.
However, I also think that there is a massive opportunity for this team to transform the organisation, NSW Rugby and even Australian Rugby for years to come. One ingredient is required:
The challenge for them is to take their game to another level and outplay the Crusaders at their own game. The critical ingredient is unrelenting commitment.
I believe that this team is made of this stuff. Several individual examples include Horne’s ferocious tackling; Burgess’s competitiveness and intensity; The Back row’s fearless ball carrying and defence and the irrepressible self belief that youth “naively” possess.
In doing so, and with such a young team, they can bring to Australia’s largest province, that once legendary self belief and never say die attitude that characterised our great National teams such as the 1984 grand slam team, the 1991 Wallabies and various Rod McQueen/ John Eales teams.
This, in turn, will cross-polinate the Wallabies as Deans rebuilds the team.
I hope that the more experienced players (Elsom, Vickerman, Waugh, Tuqiri) have learned from previous failures, most notably the World Cup quarter final where England just wanted it more. If last Saturday’s performance is anything to go on, and I agree with Spiro’s assessment, this lesson has been learned.
Lets look forward to the Tahs winning on Saturday night through a indomitable performance using a simple but complete game with pressure at Lineouts, quality ball from our scrums, ball in hand, rapid execution in the backs, multiple players supporting the ball carrier and all of this supported with an aggressive defence that owns the advantage line.
Jameswm said | May 26th 2008 @ 11:00am | Report comment
I agree Leftarmspinner – the first 5-10 minutes will tell us if the Tahs are up for it. If they play with the same intensity they did against the sharks, they’ll be in with a shot. They were just brutal in the forwards, not to mention Horne’s defence. last time they looked lost and rattled after 15 minutes.
I do think this team is made of much sterner stuff – but is it enough?
Harry said | May 26th 2008 @ 11:30am | Report comment
Possible – and this is only possible – vulnerabilities in the Crusaders are:
- Their lineout, Corey Flynn is out, and Ali Williams their only world class jumper. The Tahs have Vickerman, Mumm and Elsom; they somehow have to exploit that advantage.
- The Saders back 3 is relatively short so perhaps a bomb in the corner for Lote? If Lote and Turner can get some space, they could expose the last line of defence – remeber Turner running around Leon McDonald last season, and Lote is in world class form.
- The Ball bounces the Tahs way/a referee’s call goes the Tahs way.
As everyone’s said, the Saders have very. very few weaknesses. Good luck to the Tahs!
Spiro Zavos said | May 26th 2008 @ 11:33am | Report comment
About the lineout, the Crusaders managed to have to throw in only one lineout in the first half. Another example of Robbie Deans’ cunning coaching and the ability of his players to stick to a winning game plan. What will be the game plan against the Waratahs? The All Blacks coaches will be interested, I’d think as most of the Wallabies will be, or should be, Waratahs players.
Doug Wood said | May 26th 2008 @ 12:27pm | Report comment
I believe they can do it on a dry track– must control field position and eliminate full penalties in own half.
Defence has been superb this year esp second half of season.
Crusaders are just 15 men in Bears colours. If we can absorb the physical challenges and take our chances like last sat we are in with a great chance.
Tip is Ewan no for Paris due to family issues but flyin/ out job with Crusaders post —-so what better job interview.
LeftArmSpinner said | May 26th 2008 @ 12:42pm | Report comment
The game Plan. As with all favourites don’t let them play their game, a game they play literally every week because others can’t stop them.
Start by rattling them with big defence from the kick off, follow it up with aggression at the breakdown and target their ball carriers, Tua’ali, Thorn, Laulala, Ellis, Williams, and in particular Carter, with clattering tackles in mid field. Palu on Williams, Horne on Laulala!!! Two Dads on “Old McDonald” and his farm.
Kick for touch when in 22 or up and under outside 22 when running ball back or patterns have broken down.
Otherwise, play ball in hand and run ball wide from set pieces, particularly scrums, applying pressure, field position and with a view to getting some early points on the board and then have them play catch up footy with a silenced crowd!
No silly penalties like in previous encounters. Play for 80 minutes.
Roger said | May 26th 2008 @ 1:05pm | Report comment
I put this entry on the wrong article so apologies to anyone reading it twice:
“Unfortunately we all know that both team in initial stages will kick.
So, tahs should at all costs refrain from kicking the ball down the throat of the back 3.
Any kicking should either be well into touch (avoiding counter attacks…and so far into touch that quick lineouts and counter attacks not allowed by CRU),
or
kicking to a contest by either well placed bombs (tahs have great chasers in Horne and Carter) or once in crusaders half, try a few chip kicks (kicking to contest) to bring back 3 from crusaders closer to the line (thus allowing tahs to later kick over their heads and get them retrieving kicks on defensive).
If the tahs accept that they want structured line out ball where we can steal their lineouts and give ourselves great set peice ball, they will need to make a conscious decision not to try and seek every grain of terrotory with kicks. Remember, CRU have a new inexperienced hooker now Flynn is out. Here, we should accept gaining 40m where the ball goes into the crowd rather than trying to kick it 60m and the CRU just have a quick lineout and then run or kick it back.
CRU are going to go into the game knowing that the tahs defensive kicking is terrible i.e they will kick from set peice forcing tuquiri and turner to run back and return fire. Unless turner and Lote can play a flawless game, tahs will either return with a defensive bomb and chase, kick it out in their own half, or just give it back to a crusaders backline on the front foot at the 60 m mark. Disaster. I think the tahs will need to accept that kicking the ball back via a long kick is fruitless, kicking back by bomb and chase is risky (done only when in lead), and that kickin it into touch (where we have a strong lineout) is preferable.
Accepting the above, and that the tahs backline rush up in defense rather than coming back to help, the back 3 for tahs will need to either kick for touch…OR they can chance their arm and run it back in true randwick style. This carries a huge amount of risk, but has a better chance of retaining possession than an up and under. I dont think tahs will try this inside their own 40m or unless they are behind on scoreboard.
What is indeed unfortunate is that Richie McCaw, knowing that Beale’s goal kicking is dodgy, will break every rule in the book, knowing also that a ref is unlikely to send him off (being CU and NZ captain)…we should adopt a plan to run a group of forwards at McCaw off the first phase when possible. Direct Palu and Elsom and a few buddies straight at him off the first phase, and put him on the bottom of a ruck. This carries the usual risk that if a player is isolated, Richie will steal the ball, but given its a Gfinal, this shouldnt be a problem for at least the first half hour. If we put Richie on the bottom of a ruck for the first phase, he might not get to his feet until maybe 2 phases later. Once he is on his feet, put some more big boys in front of him and run at him again!
Everyone should remember how Richard Hill took George Smith out of the matches during the 03 World Cup, (or maybe Lions tour , not sure). England (or Lions) pretty much ran at Smith with their biggest boys in the first phase, and then a couple of their front rowers just laid thereholding Smith down. Also, Richard Hil was told to hit smith in attack whether he was on the ball or not, solely on the proviso that Smith was within 1-2 m of the ball. Smith battled well, but fatigued more than usual.
If the tahs keep their own house in order with general kicking and goal kicking, then provided the aggression of forwards is constant, we should attack them through their tight 5. If the tahs can play the agressive defensive game they have in the last few games, they can disrupt the crusaders ball. What tahs cant assume is that if we give them clean ball we can rely on smashing their backs….what we all know is that McDonald, Hamilton etc are so calm in unstructured play that even if we get their backs on the back foot after big tackles, they will backtrack (touch footy style) and then direct the attack back at our tight five as they trudge across the field.
The crusaders at several times this year have shown their ability to pick and drive a team into submission, although losing Corey Flynn wont help that. The Crusaders are a very smart team who will adapt faster than others. If they arent getting the space out wide, they will pick and drive until the tahs forwards get tired and stop fanning out in defense. Tahs will just need to be smarter.
So if kurtley kicks some goals, if tahs kick to contest or kick ball into the crowd when kicking for touch, and if we smash their tight five, tahs should win. Quite a few ifs!
joe b said | May 26th 2008 @ 1:10pm | Report comment
Like every Aussie I wanted the Canes to cause another upset (two weeks running) and knock over the CCs on home turf. This won’t make me popular, but in the first crucial 20 minutes Dickinson’s refereeing decisions seemed to be all going the home side’s way therefore giving the CCs the momentum they just love to thrive on, yet to the Canes’ credit they not only hung in, they took the lead in the face of the odds, even though the touchdown by young Zac Guildford looked clearly a bit wobbly such was his enthusiasm for scoring a defiant “we’re not scared of you guys” five-pointer, and so there was a glimmer of hope the final was going to be contested at ANZ Stadium, Homebush, Sydney, which would’ve given our side the Tahs one heckuve a boost in their efforts to secure their first ever S14 title.
Just on the Canes a little further, it would seem from two standout incidents (from memory both in the 2nd half?) that they’re not being adequately coached, something their club bosses should seriously address if they have honest hopes of their team ever winning a title as well. Firstly when the Canes believed they’d formed a lineout from a kick for territory the CCs had put up that found touch; the CCs nevertheless took a quick throw-in which was allowed to go catching the Canes embarrassingly napping. Secondly how in the early crucial stages of the second half again the Canes allowed McCaw and Read to effect a staggering “no less than five turnovers in the first ten minutes” (P-R match report). I mean in a crucial game as this where were the Canes’ forwards in support of their ball carrier? Okay, so even their “pretty boy” backs had an obligation to get in there and help protect their ball, win it back but failed abysmally to do so. This arguably cost the Canes any hope of winning the game, even though they scored a couple of late consolation tries which made the scoreline look slightly better than it really was.
To the Tahs and next weekend. A few thoughts. Though there’s no argument that last weekend’s Tahs line-up largely did the job for us for most of the year leading to this [fantastic] final, facing the CCs at home requires a somewhat different strategy if we’re planning to bring home the bacon. In Week 6 in Christchurch we went down 34-7 to them. In that encounter Alfi Mafi played at 14, Lachie Turner was at 15, Ben Jacobs was at 13, and Tom Carter was at 12 (Rob Horne was on the bench). Our scrum half was gutsy Brett Sheehan. SNK and Timana Tahu were on the injured list as was David Lyons.
Considering Spiro’s comment: “Every now and again in the match Beale went back into the pocket, as he did earlier in the season, and kicked away ball that should have been passed on. At one point late in the first half, when the youngster did this a couple of times, someone in the crowd, clearly exasperated, yelled out: ‘Pass it Beale!.’”
In Kurts’ own words at the conclusion of the Tahs/Sharks semi he said to Kafe regarding his goal kicking that he’s feeling the pressure of “finals rugby”. Yet his goal kicks are just going marginally wide of the left upright be they taken from the left or right side of the field, so to persevere with him would seem the right idea. But then we come to playing attacking rugby and Dan Carter… considering the Kiwi pivot has bulked up particularly in the upper torso region and now uses it to good effect as a battering ram (and he’s also a terrific defender these days), is our pivot Kurts’s defensive abilities up to the task of stopping Carter in his tracks ball and all? For this crucial encounter I’d be tempted to switch Kurts and Norton-Knight around; SNK’s natural game seems more inclined to “run it” at most opportunities looking to put his centres and supports into gaps. And Timana Tahu. This guy is seriously a class act and should be brought into the starting line-up. Who goes to the bench to make way? Probably Tom Carter (not that he’s done anything wrong; to the contrary he’s played great and been inspirational), but Horne should be brought into inside centre so that Timana can wear the 13 jumper where with either Lote or Lachie outside him anything’s possible.
Ben C said | May 26th 2008 @ 1:28pm | Report comment
1. Find Suzy the waitress
2. Invite the Crusaders around for a seafood BBQ the night before the match
3. Tahs players to all claim they are vegetarians during the BBQ.
stillmissit said | May 26th 2008 @ 2:19pm | Report comment
The key ingrediant the Crusaders have that the Waratahs havent is their ball handling skill. We can do it on occasions but we need to be going forwards and with our confidence up.
If the Waratahs can get in their faces and stop them from getting over the gain line easily then it will go a long way to winning this final. The Crusaders like all teams can get flustered but it takes a commited 15 man effort to make this happen.
If the they play like they did against the Sharks we will win simple!
The tactics I would employ is keep the ball in hand in the first 15 mins and dont make mistakes, force the Crusaders to go looking for the ball and frustrate them. Then kick high into their area and have Turner and Tuquiri follow hard (kick must be within chase range) and all the forwards pour down on to the area to muscle them off the ball and the backs stopping counter attacks.
Move the game into open broken play with forwards driving the arse out of them at every opportunity.
Then in the final 10 of the 1st half keep the ball in hand again to stop the inevitable attempt by the Crusaders to score before the whistle.
Second half ball in hand driving hard, mix the game up but stop any attack by the Crusaders with brutal defence. Last 15 mins attack flat out don’t be caught trying to win cautiously it won’t work.
Oh! and if Beale misses first 2 attempts give kicks to SNK.
Hope the boys get out of bed ready for this one. If Lote winks at the camera or they all walk out onto the pitch and scratch their backsides and spit a few times you’ll know it’s all over before we start.