Spiteful Tahs in bonus-point win

The Waratahs moved to the top of the Australian conference and second spot on the global standings, following their bonus-point (32-22) win over the Crusaders in Sydney on Saturday.

While there is little doubt that the Tahs won, their tactics where questionable and rather spiteful.

The men from Sydney certainly had the good fortune of some very favourable calls and can regard themselves as fortunate not to have played being a man down for more than an hour.

While Silatolu Latu was sin-binned in the 18th minute for his part in the vicious spear tackle on Sam Whitelock, big lock Will Skelton escaped punishment after being as complicit as the hooker.

However, it could (and perhaps should) have been a yellow and a red cards, as Latu was also seen on video replays landing a punch on Wyatt Crockett.

South African referee Marius van der Westhuizen, after consulting his touchline assistant James Leckie (Australia), went upstairs to Australian TMO Peter Marshall. Van der Westhuizen indicated that he felt Skelton was the big culprit, but Marshall suggested it was the hooker. Van der Westhuizen asked about the punch, but Marshall ignored him.

The result was a yellow card to Latu and no action against Skelton.

Skelton was lucky, again, in the 57th minute – when he deliberately charged into the back of Richie McCaw way off the ball. Again the referee and his TMO disagreed on the measure of the punishment – it ended up as a penalty only. And minutes later another Skelton shoulder charge in Whitelock resulted in a penalty only.

It has to been seen in context – with Richie McCaw sin-binned at a crucial stage late in the second half for a side-entry at a ruck when he and his team had hardly been on the wrong side of the laws throughout the game. There may have been a few penalties at quick succession in the red zone, but the number of off-the-ball shoulder charges by the Waratahs that went unpunished made this incident look rather strange.

The irony is that the Waratahs were good enough to win, even without the niggle.

Not even a second-half rally could save a Crusaders team that trailed 8-25 with half-an-hour to go in a thrilling rematch of the 2014 Super Rugby Final.

A brace to Taqele Naiyaravoro, as well as tries to Rob Horne and Bernard Foley gave the Tahs their first four-try bonus point at home this year.

Much had been made of the clash between giant Fijians, Naiyaravoro and Nemani Nadolo. In the opening 10 minutes of the game neither wing disappointed.

Naiyaravoro failed to field the kick-off, gifting Nadolo a try in the corner within the first two minutes. But Taqele made amends five minutes later, when some slick handling from Foley, Kurtley Beale and Israel Folau gave Naiyaravoro the return salvo in the right corner.

And then, in a double blow for the home side, Dan Carter slotted a penalty goal to seize the lead and hooker Tolu Latu was yellow carded in that controversial lifting tackle on Sam Whitelock.

But the Waratahs' defence lifted under pressure, and a crunching tackle from Michael Hooper forced a penalty when Owen Franks scooped up the loose ball from an offside position. Foley stepped up, and gave the home side a two point advantage midway through the half.

And the unrelenting Tahs' defence continued to force errors all over the park. Slade spilt an easy pass and the impressive Rob Horne pounced – sprinting 55 metres for the Tahs' second try. Foley converted from in front, giving the Tahs a 9-point advantage which they carried into the break.           

The big men continued to wreak havoc in the Crusaders' midfield when play resumed. Wycliff Palu and Will Skelton earned Foley his second penalty goal, and then Sekope Kepu punched the ball up the middle to help Naiyaravoro back into the right corner for his second try of the match.

Trailing by 17 points, the seven-time champions called on all their experience to claw their way back into the game. Carter turned the ball back inside to a charging Nadolo, who burst up the middle and fed Richie McCaw. Ten minutes later, a rolling maul pushed replacement flanker Mat Todd into the corner. Dan Carter nailed a sideline conversion and the Crusaders were only three points away from a stunning comeback.

After conceding 14 points in as many minutes, a stunned home crowd was brought right back into the game when perennial villain Richie McCaw was yellow carded for entering a ruck offside with ten minutes to play.

And, unlike the Crusaders, the Tahs were able to sink the boot in while the Crusaders were down. Bernard Foley chipped over the top from a scrum, regathered and secured the win and an all-important bonus point.

The NSW Waratahs must now consolidate their position atop the Australian conference with a crucial road trip to South Africa, where they take on the Lions in Johannesburg on May 30 and the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein on June 5.

Man of the match: Nemani Nadolo tried bravely to spark something with some powerful bursts, while Kieran Read and Richie McCaw also had bursts of energy. Sam Whitelock also worked hard. Israel Folau, as you would expect, had some decent runs. Kurtley Beale (although he also made a few too many errors) and Nick Phipps looked very energetic and threatening with ball in hand. Wycliff Palu was all power, Michael Hooper and Stephen Hoiles were their team's energizer bunnies, while Dave Dennis was one of the unsung heroes. However, our award goes to Waratahs No.10 Bernard Foley, who showed he is now Australia's premier flyhalf. Everything he touched turned to gold.

The scorers:

For the Waratahs:

Tries: Naiyaravoro 2, Horne, Foley

Cons: Foley 3

Pens: Foley 2

For the Crusaders:

Tries: Nadolo, McCaw, Todd

Cons: Carter 2

Pen: Carter

Yellow cards: Silatolu Latu (Waratahs, 18 – foul play, lifting tackle and punching), Richie McCaw (Crusaders, 71 – professional foul and repeated infringements, side entry at ruck)

Teams:

Waratahs: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Taqele Naiyaravoro, 13 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Rob Horne, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Nick Phipps, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 Michael Hooper, 6 Stephen Hoiles, 5 Dave Dennis, 4 Will Skelton, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Silatolu Latu, 1 Benn Robinson.

Replacements: 16 Hugh Roach, 17 Jeremy Tilse, 18 Paddy Ryan, 19 Mitchell Chapman, 20 Jack Dempsey, 21 Patrick McCutcheon, 22 Brendan McKibbin, 23 Matt Carraro.

Crusaders: 15 Tom Taylor, 14 Nafi Tuitavake, 13 Ryan Crotty, 12 Dan Carter, 11 Nemani Nadolo, 10 Colin Slade, 9 Mitchell Drummond, 8 Kieran Read (captain), 7 Richie McCaw, 6 Jordan Taufua, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Luke Romano, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Ben Funnell, 1 Wyatt Crockett.

Replacements: 16 Codie Taylor, 17 Joe Moody, 18 Nepo Laulala, 19 Jimmy Tupou, 20 Matt Todd, 21 Andy Ellis, 22 Israel Dagg, 23 Jone Macilai.

Referee: Marius van der Westhuizen (South Africa)

Assistant referees: James Leckie (Australia), Michael Hogan (Australia)

TMO: Peter Marshall (Australia)