Miserable Waratahs season ends with another defeat and serious injury to star
A terrible year for the Waratahs has somehow reached a new depth of despair in the final game; Wallabies captain Jake Gordon’s season-ending Achilles tendon injury added to the sting of a defeat against the Force in Perth.
The Waratahs took a 20-7 lead after dominating the opening 30 minutes but then capitulated in all-too-familiar circumstances as the Force forwards overwhelmed their NSW rivals and recorded a 31-25 win.
Adding injury to insult, Gordon was helped off the field after rupturing his right Achilles tendon when he attempted a quick kick late in the first half. This will almost certainly mean the incumbent Wallabies No.9 will miss all Test matches this year. Gordon’s former Test team-mate Nic White said he was “gutted” by being clearly emotional for his friend in his commentary on Stan Sport.
Although neither side failed to reach the final, a dead rubber victory was still hugely important for Simon Cron’s Force, who belatedly hit the belts in the second half of the year and finished with seven wins; They showed their highest performance since 2014. Dylan Pietsch, Carlo Tizzano and Jeremy Williams were in fantastic form.
For the Waratahs it was another humbling defeat – their ninth of the year – and the end of an insipid season that will leave manager Dan McKellar under immense pressure for a comeback in the early stages of next year.
McKellar is entering the final year of his three-year contract. While he has said he believes the team has made progress recently, the apparent regression throughout the season tells a different story.
The Tahs’ confidence appeared to have been shaken for weeks and their inability to execute key areas of the game, particularly in the line-out, meant it was inevitable that the Force would overwhelm them in the second half, despite being ahead early and even looking to seize victory late on.
Falling from 20-7 to 24-20, NSW managed to take the lead by one point in the last ten minutes. But soon after, a losing line-out – one of NSW’s staggering seven losing line-ups that night – saw Force chip the ball downfield and attempt to seal the match soon after.
Not for the first time this season, the Waratahs’ squad has been decimated by Williams and Force, with effectiveness reduced to just 53 per cent. Of the seven squads NSW lost, five were in the Force’s 22.
The only real positive for NSW was an outstanding performance from Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, who was in dominant form in his return from a hamstring injury.
Playing with a beehive on his bonnet after a frustrating season of injury and limited tackles, Suaalii was a threat in attack and defense, with NSW’s tries mostly coming after tackle-breaking runs. But his strength was not nearly enough to overcome the damage from many areas of the game for the Tahs, who were physically outmatched up front by the relentless Force forwards.
“I think a few of the themes of the night were common all season long. We’ve played in most of the previous games and allowed teams to get back into the game,” captain Matt Philip said. “Tonight the set pieces had a bit of a malfunction which caused them to go into our D zone. I’m very disappointed. Firstly, for a band that tried so hard and didn’t get results and couldn’t enjoy it.”
“And for our fans, for our fan base, to not get results for them and for our staff. It’s really disappointing for us not to get that done. So yeah, we’ve got a lot to work on for next season.”
McKellar said the Waratahs again mixed good patches with bad stretches during the game. He described the Waratahs’ 5-9 season as “disappointing” but called for patience.
“We had opportunities to be much further ahead of where we are and we couldn’t take advantage of them. So there is nothing but disappointment,” he said.
“You’ve got to roll with the punches. Times like this make the good times feel even better and they will come. We have a group here that embraces what we want to do.”
The Waratahs were ahead 20-12 in the first 40 minutes of the first half, where they could not take full advantage despite having territory and possession of the ball.
Following a strong Suaalii move, the Tahs finally got the Force back and scored an opening try when hooker Ioane Moananu retrieved the ball from a pile and found no defenders in front of him.
Even though the rubber had run out, the Tahs signaled that they needed a win, opting for two penalty goals from Jack Bowen in the 20th and 23rd minutes.
But Philip’s constant lack of care in catching restarts eventually saw the Tahs pay a price as the ball drifted towards the line. Harry Potter failed to recover and the pursuit of Pietsch was deemed to have dropped the ball.
The Waratahs turned and provided Suaalii and Max Jorgensen to push forward and soon Potter scored a second try for NSW, Moananu again being clever at a loose throw and making a run wide before firing a basketball pass to his winger for the try.
The Force had a bit of a chance when Joey Walton was booked for a soft moment of high contact and they quickly capitalized on it. Zac Lomax came down the wing to score and passed the ball to Piestch; Piestch showed sensational finishing ability by scoring and beating five over-pursuing NSW defenders.
Big prop Misinale Epenisa came in in the 47th minute and Force started to tighten the screws even more on the forwards. The NSW attack also began to falter and in the 60th minute a series of attacks on the Waratahs’ line inevitably led to NSW conceding another try, this time to Carlo Tizzano with a powerful run from close range.
Again, it was Suaalii who brought the Tahs back into the contest with a powerful charge from the line-out and shelter from a follow-on fumble by Apolosi Ranawai.
This saw NSW take the lead by one point but it wouldn’t last for long.
Another lineout lost in attack by the Force 22 saw the home team collect the ball and kick it into the area, which they used to try to follow up with a rolling strike. Tizzano was the man again which saw him equal Cameron Shepherd’s record of 32 tries for the Force.
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Iain Payten is senior sports reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect with: X or email.
