Super Rugby AU Wrap-Up - Round 8

Round 8 of Super Rugby AU saw heavy defeats for the Force and Waratahs as they went down to the Reds and Brumbies respectively.

Any hopes the Force may have had of victory were dashed after relatively competitive opening exchanges which their opponents absorbed and thereafter gained traction.

The Reds managed to score a massive eight tries while only conceding one as their preparations on both attack and defence bore fruit.

Scorers:

Reds:

Tries: Filipo Daugunu (2), Fraser McReight, Tate McDermott (2), James O’Connor, Bryce Hegarty, Tuaina Taii Tualima 

Conversions: James O’Connor (7)

Penalties: James O’Connor.

Force:

Tries: Andrew Ready

A delicate 12-11 half-time lead for the Brumbies was transformed into a convincing 38-11 victory as the men from Canberra hit a rhythm in the second stanza, running in four tries and, thus, securing their spot at the top of the overall standings.

The Brumbies will be happy that they are back to winning ways after suffering a somewhat surprising defeat to the Rebels in their last outing – incidentally, their first loss in an Australian derby since March, 2019.

The ‘Tahs started the game with purpose and enjoyed some dominance in both territory and possession that they were, however, unable to convert into points. They also ran into lineout problems which did nothing to help their cause.

Scorers:

Brumbies:   

Tries: Ryan Lonergan, Andrew Muirhead, Pete Samu (2), Tom Wright (2)

Conversions: Lonergan (2), Bayley Kuenzle (2)

Waratahs:

Tries: Jack Dempsey

Penalties: Will Harrison (2)

The Brumbies now enjoy a slender two-point lead atop the table with 23 points while the Reds lurk in second on 21.

The Rebels (4^th) will be eyeing third spot which is currently occupied by the Waratahs, albeit by just a single point while the struggling Force are languishing at the bottom of the table with only 2 points to their name.

Round 9 will see the Brumbies unleashed upon the Force in Canberra while the ‘Tahs will do their best to knock over the Rebels and maintain their position in third.