Chiefs vs Sunwolves: Sunwolves score massive upset 30-15

Match result:

The Sunwolves have beaten the Chiefs 30-15 in Hamilton to record their first ever away win in the Super Rugby competition.

Ahead of the game there was talk about how the Chiefs had struggled in the opening rounds but they would surely get their season back on track in this match. At home, against the perennial underdogs – surely.

What was needed was a controlled start to the game from the Chiefs. Yes they’ve got amazing ball players and runners but they needed to focus first on building pressure on the Sunwolves and getting points on the board.

The Sunwolves however would need to come out hard and fast against the Chiefs. Given the humbling result last week where the Kiwi side conceded eight tries, if the Sunwolves could go hard at the Chiefs early and rattle them then maybe, just maybe they could break the Chiefs spirit and cause an upset.

And that’s exactly what happened. The Sunwolves played some lovely controlled rugby in the first half and sensibly kept the ball in hand as much as possible.

They clearly identified that kicking to the Chiefs back three and McKenzie would be a foolish strategy and so they kept hold of the ball and played some very effective rugby. Lovely short pop passes put players into gaps and the Chiefs’ rush defence couldn’t cope.

While the Sunwolves were playing well, the Chiefs were making things so much harder for themselves. They made eight unforced errors in the opening 30 minutes and just kept giving the ball back to the Sunwolves over and over.

The visitors took full advantage scoring early and then continuing to keep the scoreboard moving so they could build a decent lead.

At half time the visitors were 23-3 up and they totally deserved their lead. The Chiefs would have reassured themselves that if they can only get hold of the ball and keep it then they have the players to get back into the game. They needed to score early and start putting doubt into the Sunwolves minds.

For the Sunwolves the big risk was that they would try and protect their lead rather than repeating the great work that had got them there in the first place.

The Chiefs started to deliver early in the second half when Alex Nankivell scored after just 6 minutes – was this going to be where the dream starts to end for the Sunwolves. Not at all. But what was incredibly impressive was that the Sunwolves had to show their defensive skills and passion whereas in the first half they had made all the running.

The Chiefs had huge amounts of possession but they couldn’t break down the Sunwolves defence and in the end resorted to kicking far too often. When they did kick many of them were then executed poorly.

Sadly Damian McKenzie – such a talented player – had a bad day at the office. What his team needed was a controlled performance from the #10 but he failed to deliver from either a creative or a controlled point of view.

His day was summed up when he had plenty of time to judge a kick that would force the Sunwolves deep into their own 22 but instead the ball was overcooked and it went out the back of the field giving the Sunwolves a scrum way back up the field.

McKenzie has not yet convinced at fly half and perhaps he does need to go back to full back where his running skills can be given more chances to shine.

While the Chiefs did have the vast majority of possession in the second half, the Sunwolves still took full advantage when opportunities came their way.

They could have tightened up too much but they stretched the Chiefs several times and in the end the Chiefs just couldn’t handle the pressure with their basic ball handling skills letting them down over and over.

Gerhard van den Heever’s try in the 57th minute came just two minutes after the winger had botched a certain score when he failed to regather a bouncing ball just centimetres from the Chiefs’ line.

It was a very deserved reward for one of several Sunwolves players who had impressed on the night.

The defensive excellence of the Sunwolves was joined by some real maturity. As the clock ticked down the visitors played clever rugby where they went through phase after phase of simple rugby. They weren’t gaining much ground at times but they didn’t need to.

The Sunwolves were deserved winners and had been the better side from minute one. For the Chiefs there are some big concerns – their line out was clunky in the first half, their handling skills were poor all game long, they lacked to create many genuine opportunities and they didn’t seem capable of playing a pressure building game plan with the boot. They’ve lost three from three now and that’s going to be tough to bounce back from.

The Sunwolves go to face the Blues next week and who is going to bet against them after today?

Final score
Chiefs 15
Sunwolves 30

Match preview:

The Chiefs welcome the travelling Sunwolves to Hamilton for their Round 3 clash on Saturday with both sides desperate to get their first win of 2019 on the board. Join The Roar for live scores and a blog of the match, starting from 5:35pm AEDT.

Usually a preview of the Sunwolves playing away in New Zealand would focus on whether the scoreboard is going to have enough space to fit all the point scorers’ names on it.

However this time is different. Sure the Chiefs are definite favourites, but it’s important to remember that the Chiefs have lost both their opening clashes and conceded over 80 points.

Meanwhile the Sunwolves pushed the Waratahs to the very limit before losing by only one point in Round 2.

The Sunwolves caused the Tahs real problems and their attacking runners punched holes in the Sydney siders defence over and over.

Given that the Chiefs let the Brumbies score eight tries last weekend, you’d hope and assume that they’ll have done a lot of work on rebuilding that defensive wall ahead of this clash.

To help get their season back on track, coach Colin Cooper has made seven changes in both the forwards and backs.

One of the key moves will see Brad Weber start at scrum half. His partnership with Damian McKenzie at fly half will be crucial.

McKenzie is known for his live wire performances and he is very capable of tearing the Sunwolves to pieces. However that’s not needed in this match – at least not to begin with.

The Chiefs, and McKenzie will need to lead from the front here, need to build pressure and squeeze the Japanese and let the points come.

They don’t need to try and win the game in the first 30 minutes with miraculous moves and tries.

While the Sunwolves did put in an impressive performance last week against the Tahs, they are sadly missing some key talent at a time when they could really do with it.

Co-captain Craig Millar and Ed Quirk are both out and they will be missed.

The Sunwolves have never won in New Zealand. In fact they’ve never won on the road.

They are going to be up against it for sure on Saturday but given the poor form of the Chiefs in their opening two rounds then maybe there’s a way for the Sunwolves to go at them early and unsettle them. Maybe. Probably not. But maybe.

Prediction
The Sunwolves fight so hard to banish the constant stories about whether they deserve to be in the competition or not that you wouldn’t be blamed for wanting them to win this one.

But the Chiefs are at home and will be eager to put in a killer performance.

Chiefs to win by 15.

Join The Roar for live scores and a blog of the match, starting from 5:35pm AEDT on Saturday.

Where: FMG Stadium, Hamilton
Date: Saturday 2nd March 2019
When: Kick off 17:35 AEDT
TV: Foxsports
Betting: Chiefs $1.03, Sunwolves $12

Chiefs
15 Shaun Stevenson
14 Sean Wainui
13 Tumua Manu
12 Orbyn Leger
11 Etene Nanai-Seturo
10 Damian McKenzie
9 Brad Weber
8 Taleni Seu
7 Mitchell Karpik
6 Mitchell Brown
5 Michael Allardice
4 Brodie Retallick (c)
3 Angus Ta’avao
2 Samisoni Taukei’aho
1 Aidan Ross

Replacements
16 Bradley Slater
17 Tevita Mafileo
18 Sosefo Kautai
19 Jesse Parete
20 Lachlan Boshier
21 Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi
22 Alex Nankivell
23 Ataata Moeakiola

Sunwolves
15 Jason Emery
14 Gerhard van den Heever
13 Shane Gates
12 Michael Little
11 Jamie Henry
10 Hayden Parker
9 Kaito Shigeno
8 Rahboni Warren Vosayaco
7 Shuhei Matsuhashi
6 Hendrik Tui
5 Uwe Helu
4 Luke Thompson
3 Hiroshi Yamashita
2 Atsushi Sakate
1 Pauliasi Manu

Replacements
16 Nathan Vella
17 Sam Prattley
18 Asaeli Ai Valu
19 Tom Rowe
20 James Moore
21 Jamie Booth
22 Phil Burleigh
23 Rikiya Matsuda

Referees
Referee Federico Anselmi
Assistant referees Nick Briant, Dan Waenga
TMO Shane McDermott

2019 Form
Chiefs – LL
Sunwolves – LL

Played 2
Chiefs won 2
Sunwolves won 0
Drawn 0