NSW Waratahs coach Daryl Gibson has praised the fight in his side but slammed them for a poor performance after a 24-24 Super Rugby draw with the Sharks in Durban.
A rib cartilage injury to star centre Kurtley Beale, which required a scan, was another concern for Gibson, though his side produced a barnstorming finish for a second straight week. Beale left the field shortly before halftime and it’s unclear whether he will be fit for next weekend’s clash with Jaguares in Buenos Aires.
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NSW led 7-0 after an early converted try to starting halfback Jake Gordon, but the visitors twice trailed by seven in the second half.
Both teams scored three tries in a scrappy mistake-marred match in which neither side ever led by more than seven points.
A 76th-minute try to replacement halfback and debutant Mitch Short from a devastating long range counter-attack, followed by a sideline conversion from five-eighth Bernard Foley earned NSW the draw.
Gibson acknowledged their scrum came under pressure in the second half but felt overall his tight five did an excellent job, and he was unhappy with the Tahs’ overall performance.
“I thought we were pretty poor tonight to be frank,” Gibson said. “At times we lacked ball control, we turned the ball over too much and put a lot of pressure on ourselves.
“I’m certainly not happy about our performance. We’re not walking away rejoicing at all. We looked at our own performance and had a pretty honest assessment in the change room and probably know that we need to get much better if we’re going to be competitive in this competition.”
NSW scored at the death to beat the Stormers in their opening game last week and again showed good fitness and resilience, following their sloppy execution through the match.
“What I am pleased about with the team is around the fight in our team, we don’t give up,” Gibson said. “We’re fit and we’re giving our best so that’s a good foundation to grow from.”
The Sharks dominated territory and possession in the first half but were held to 10-10 at the break. Springbok centre Lukhanyo An’s second try pushed them ahead but impressive Tahs captain and openside flanker Michael Hooper then scored a long-distance try from a turnover.
Five-eight Robert Du Preeez raced over 40 metres to restore the home team’s lead, but Short and Foley earned NSW a share of the spoils.
“We we were able to create a lot and then we seemed to stuff up,” Hooper said. “We can be a lot better.”
Meanwhile, the Melbourne Rebels showed they are the real deal by opening the Super Rugby season with successive victories, but they are already focused on making it three in a row.
Following their 37-17 win over the Sunwolves the Rebels rushed from Prince Chichibu Memorial Stadium in Tokyo to make the night flight back to Melbourne in order to give themselves an extra day to prepare for their next match against the Brumbies on Friday night at AAMI Park.
“Because we’ve only got a six-day turnaround to the Brumbies instead of staying an extra night in Tokyo we’re going home a day earlier so we get an extra day’s preparation,” said coach Dave Wessels.
Melbourne scored six tries – winger Jack Maddocks collecting a hat-trick – and secured a bonus point to sit on top of the Australian conference with maximum points from their two outings.
It’s the first time the Rebels have ever opened the season with two wins.
Wessels said he felt it was an improved performance on their round one victory over Queensland Reds but they still had plenty of work to do particularly with stiffer opposition coming their way.
“In reality we know that we’re not playing anywhere near the level we want to set for ourselves but if we continue to win it makes that journey a lot easier,” Wessels said. “The thing that was a step up for us was our back starter attack along with our scrum and those two things set the platform for the win.”
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The Brumbies will be stinging from a surprise 18-10 loss to the under-manned Reds, with Wessels saying his team needed to be on their game for a third straight wins.
“The pleasing thing was that after the game the boys were already picking out the things they could do better because as a group we have some high expectations of each other,” he said.
“Probably for 60 to 70 per cent of that game we played the way we wanted to play but we let moments go that we shouldn’t have and we need to learn to control those moments better.”
Maddocks may make way for the return of Wallabies winger Marika Koroibete, who has been sidelined with a knee injury but Wessels said the 21-year-old was proving a valuable member of their line-up.
The Rebels are hopeful that flanker Angus Cotterill will be available after requiring stitches in a hand injury.