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Not for the first time this weekend an Australian team missed the jump and paid the price.
On Saturday the Melbourne Rebels conceded two tries in the opening five minutes against the Drua in Fiji. A day later and it was the Western Force who missed the jump and conceded two tries in six minutes and never recovered to go down 45-42 in Palmerston North.
Losing to the Hurricanes is nothing to lose sleep over. The Wellington-based side leaped ahead of the Brumbies into second place, but the losing bonus-point was the sole point Simon Cron’s men grabbed during their three-week tour of New Zealand.
“We spoke about it all season, trying to be a team that can play 82-84-85 minutes,” acting-captain Gareth Simpson said.
“We’ve been there and there about in our three games so far (on the road) and it’s good to actually finish that off quite strong. We’re disappointed with the result but it’s good to take something away from it.”
Hurricanes skipper Dane Coles, who was of the home side’s best and scored a try in the first half, paid credit to the Force’s willingness not to throw in the towel.
“I think we showed at times we’re a pretty good team, but credit to the Force,” Coles said. “They’ve got a lot of scrap in their team, always keep turning up.
“Stoked to get the win, disappointed about the bonus point. We could have had that, but that’s footy.”
The bonus point could, however, prove pivotal as they chase a field of sides locked on either two or three wins to secure a knockout, top eight finals position.
Indeed, the fight Cron’s men showed in the final 15 minutes, particularly the last few minutes where Zach Kibirige scored a stunning late try, shows the tightknit nature of the squad.
The Western Force managed to claim just one point during their three-week tour of New Zealand. Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images
The bye comes at the perfect time after a long opening six weeks, which has seen them play at home just twice.
While they will have a few days off, the Force will have to pick it up a notch if they are to head to Sydney and knock over a Waratahs side starting to find their feet after a horror opening month.
“Yeah, that’s the good thing, there’s always another game,” Simpson said.
“We’ll take the work-ons from this and look forward to the next one. Look forward to the week off as well, but we’ll go hard on the next game as well.”
The Force simply couldn’t keep pace with the home side during the first half.
Despite not having Ardie Savea, the Hurricanes bashed over the Force who were demolished at the scrum in the opening 20 minutes and struggled to slow the home side’s ruck speed.
Du’Plessis Kirifi was at the heart of everything the Hurricanes did, with the openside flanker scoring in the third minute.
Three minutes later and No.8 Brayden Iose scored.
Du’Plessis Kirifi was the Hurricanes’ best during their 45-42 win over the Force. Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images
Force lock Jeremy Williams, who was one of his side’s best along with centre Bayley Kuenzle and flanker Tim Anstee, showed some fight to get over the line in the 10th minute.
But the Force continued to shoot themselves in the foot and their ill-discipline allowed Coles to score midway through the second half.
The Hurricanes looked like posting a cricket score when Iose scored his second after 32 minutes.
That feeling grew when Bailyn Sullivan crossed out wide.
Two tries in six minutes to the visitors, with a try to Kini Naholo sandwiched in the middle from the Hurricanes, saw the Force close the gap as Simpson scored one and then set up another after a lovely chip to Kibirige.
The Hurricanes looked like they would secure a bonus point when Hame Faiva scored a simple try, but three tries in the final 10 minutes saw the Force secure a well-earned point for themselves to take back to Perth.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.