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Just as well Bernard Foley has a golden boot for the Waratahs, as his general play is sadly lacking.
Early this morning in Durban Foley landed a conversion from touch near time to snatch a draw with the Sharks. The scoreboard was locked at ten-all at half-time and 24-all at full-time, with each side scoring three converted tries and a penalty.
And while Foley’s general play left a lot to be desired, with three forward passes killing really promising Waratah attacks, there was a lot to like about this new-look Waratah squad.
I give the credit to the new assistant coach Simon Cron. He took Northern Suburbs to two successive Shute Shield grand finals in 2016 and 2017, winning the first to give the club their first premiership in 41 years before losing to Warringah to give them their first ever premiership in the second.
Cron cut his rugby teeth as a kid and as a teenager in the New Zealand heartland of Canterbury. He’s all about playing rugby to enjoy it, providing the basics are spot on.
Norths had it in spades and the Waratahs are starting to show it, which is a helluva lot more palatable than the miserable four Super Rugby wins they managed last season.
(AAP Image/Daniel Munoz)
As part of the proof, drawing with the Sharks was no mean feat. The Waratahs had only 49 per cent possession and 46 per cent territory. They lost three tight heads, gave away eight penalties to three and missed 22 tackles to nine.
But under the massive pressure exerted by the Sharks, the Waratahs of the past would have missed more like 50 tackles and been thrashed by a cricket score. So in a backhanded way missing only 22 tackles was a giant step forward.
But something has to be done about the scrummaging. The Waratahs were pushed all over the park, yet they still managed a draw – don’t ever lost sight of that fact.
In many ways the Waratahs were their own worst enemy in Durban. There were so many highly promising moves that broke down through not sticking to basics. I’ve mentioned Foley’s three forward passes, but he wasn’t the only culprit.
How any representative footballer can deliberately throw a forward pass defies description.
If a support has overrun the ball carrier, which in itself is inexcusable, don’t compound the error by throwing the forward pass – either die with it to retain possession or put a boot to it. It’s as simple as that.
(Steve Haag/Gallo Images via Getty Images)
The promising pointers? The Waratahs now have two exciting young half-backs in Jake Gordon and in debutant Mitch Short, another Randwick product. Both swiftly and accurately deliver from set play and in the loose, which is a far cry from the pottering and loitering Nick Phipps, who is injured.
When Short came on in the second half he immediately made a spectacular break but with no support. The Waratahs lost possession. Late in the game he finished off a superb Waratahs attacking move to touch down. He’ll long remember his debut. And there’s no space left for Phipps.
I really like the look of outside centre Lalakai Foketi, who uses his big frame to advantage in attack and is a take-no-prisoners defender. I’m looking forward to him linking up more with Israel Folau. Bench utility back Bryce Hegarty is another exciting prospect who deserves far more game time.
Up-front skipper Michael Hooper was 80 minutes non-stop but in a positive way. He never gave away a penalty, made many a telling tackle and was on hand to take the final pass for a Waratah try. That’s more like it.
Lineout jumper Neil Hanigan has a great understanding with hooker Damien Fitzpatrick’s feeds. Long may that be the case.
(Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)
So it’s another long haul to Buenos Aires to take on the Jaguares next weekend. May the improvement and the enjoyment continue for the Waratahs so the fans can flock back to Allianz after their enforced hibernation.
But it’s SANZAAR that should go into hibernation after its latest major blunder. The current first cricket Test between South Africa and Australia is being played at Kingsmead in Durban. That decision was made two years ago, but SANZAAR didn’t bother to do its homework.
The Super Rugby draw was made only a couple of months ago, when SANZAAR scheduled the Sharks vs Waratahs game at Kings Park, just under two kilometres from Kingsmead.
So the cricket Test and the rugby were played at exactly the same time. Will SANZAAR ever do anything right?
Don’t hold your breath waiting for a miracle.