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After making a dozen changes for their trip to Perth, the Brumbies were supposed to be well-rested to attack their mouth-watering clash against the Chiefs in Canberra with full force.
But some plans are better in theory than practice. Just ask Stephen Larkham.
Disjointed and clunky, nothing went right for the Brumbies as their top two hopes blew up in smokes as they failed to hit their straps following last week’s shock loss to the Force and suffered yet another disappointing defeat to the Chiefs, losing 31-21.
Asked whether he would have rested as many first-choice players if he had his time again, Larkham said only time would tell but did acknowledge some of his combinations didn’t work quite as well with some dropped ball.
“With what’s happened tonight, potentially,” he said.
“We’ll have to get to the end of the season and make a decision on that. We’d set out six months ago and planned that we were going to rest some the players last week.
“It’s actually a pretty good time in the calendar for us because the boys get a freshen up and then we get a two-game run into the finals. We’ve still got a bit of work to do now. We’ve got a big game against the Rebels.
“It’s a bit hard to say whether it was the right call, we’ll see if these boys bounce back.”
Luke Jacobson opened the scoring for the Chiefs and was one of his side’s best during their important win over the Brumbies at GIO Stadium, on May 27, 2023, in Canberra. (Photo by Mark Nolan/Getty Images)
While the Brumbies lacked fluency, particularly in the opposition’s attacking zone, the Chiefs were marvellous.
Indeed, Clayton McMillan’s men played like they were the side that needed to win to seal a top two spot. Better still, they wrapped up top spot to put themselves in pole position to host the Super Rugby final a decade after defeating the Brumbies at home to seal their second title.
Their defensive effort was at the heart of their success, as Sam Cane’s side were forced to roll up the sleeves and make 232 tackles. Even still, they had less missed tackles (21) than the Brumbies (33 out of 166).
Just as impressive was the Chiefs’ work at the maul, where the minor premiers curtailed the Brumbies’ biggest threat by stopping the home side dead in its tracks.
It meant the Brumbies failed to get any momentum from the set-piece nor pay from their biggest weapon.
While the Brumbies looked like they had turned up ready to put on a show as Tom Wright ran the ball out of his own half from the kick-off, the ambition fell flat.
Indeed, few teams beat the Chiefs at their own game, with the men out of Hamilton possessing the most dangerous back three in this year’s competition.
Nor did the Brumbies’ handling help them either, but too often lapses of concentration hurt them.
That was certainly the case in the opening minutes, as Luke Jacobson picked up the ball from the back of the scrum and fooled Ryan Lonergan and Andy Muirhead to run 40 metres untouched to score the opening try.
The Brumbies did however hit back quickly through Len Ikitau, who burst onto a good ball from Tamati Tua.
But for the next hour the Brumbies were met by a big Chiefs wall, as nothing they tried came off.
Tom Wright tried hard but little came off for the Brumbies as they went down to the Chiefs at GIO Stadium on May 27, 2023, in Canberra. (Photo by Mark Nolan/Getty Images)
A yellow card to Allan Alaalatoa, who was later forced off early in the second half with a concerning calf injury, for a high shot on Brodie Retallick didn’t help.
With the Brumbies skipper off, Damian McKenzie decided to take three points rather than force the issue. It was a surprising decision but one that paid off in a tight, physical match.
Josh Ioane’s try after 32 minutes helped turn the game well and truly in the Chiefs’ favour as some poor reads in defence, including a missed tackle from Tua hurt.
But it was the Brumbies’ inability to turn pressure into points, especially in the seconds before half-time after a Noah Lolesio linebreak that was the moment that summed up the home side’s frustrating night as Jahrome Brown was penalised for not releasing.
Two tries in five minutes in the moments before the hour-mark to replacement halfback Cortez Ratima, who was exceptional after coming on early for a concussed Brad Weber, and Shaun Stevenson blew the game open.
While Corey Toole hit back in the 69th minute, the clock was the Brumbies’ biggest enemy.
A late try to Pete Samu helped put some respectability on the scoreboard, but there was no sugar coating the Brumbies’ deflating loss.
They now have six days to pick themselves up and try to rediscover some momentum, as they host the Rebels, who will be hunting a victory of their own to keep their finals hopes alive.
While the Chiefs must decide whether to rest some key men for their trip to Perth, or turn their attention to the first week of finals footy.
“We had plenty of opportunity in ‘A’ zone, we just couldn’t convert into points,” Lonergan said.
“The Chiefs defended outstandingly the whole game, particularly in their ‘D’ zone, so pretty disappointed with our ‘A’ zone conversion.
“We’ve probably got the mentality that we’ve got to win the rest. It’s the pointy end of the season now and we’re come off back-to-back losses, and we know what we’ve got to work on, and we’ll review hard and look to win from here on out.”
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.