Israel Folau palms off Springbok captain Jean de Villiers on his way to the line

by Paul Cook –

Israel Folau has further enhanced his burgeoning reputation in the 15 man game with a match winning try four minutes from time to help the NSW Waratahs to a 21-15 victory over the Stormers. It was a gutsy effort from the Tahs, fatigued from their South African trip and struggling to make headway in the second half as the Stormers held firm but after last week’s one-way traffic against the Kings, they showed they can now win the tight ones as well.

Coach Michael Cheika was pleased with his side’s tenacity and staying power under enormous pressure. “I think we got stuck right in tonight. We weren’t brilliant by any stretch of the imagination, but our physicality in defence against probably one of the biggest packs around [was good]. They put themselves about and in defence we made some cracking hits and were up for the physicality of the game.”

They had to come from behind to do it, a brutal and efficient Stormers outfit thwarting them time and time again and illustrating exactly why they have been the best defence in the competition over the last few seasons, but the Waratahs weren’t to be outdone and just when it looked like they had been frustrated out of the game, they came up with the answers.

It was the bench that helped them home. Ben Lucas, on for the ever industrious Brendan McKibbin, busied himself at the back of the ruck as the home side drove ever closer, looking for that vital moment to strike for glory. When it came, he picked out fellow replacement Berrick Barnes who faked a pass, stepped into space and freed man-of-the-moment Folau to the line, adding another chapter to his rugby fairy tale in the process.

Paddy Ryan on the charge

The try was just reward for the Tahs endeavours after falling 15-11 behind with only 15 minutes remaining. It was also a vindication of skipper Dave Dennis’ decision to kick to the corner instead of taking a gift 3pts from in front.

“We were struggling to get down that close to the line throughout the match,” Dennis explained afterwards. “We didn’t have many opportunities inside their 22, particularly in the second half, so we had a go. Their defence is quite strong, so to kick a penalty and get back down there and score a try or kick another one, would’ve probably been a bit tougher than other games. It was a big call in hindsight but we got the result and it was really pleasing that the boys stuck to the game plan in that last five minutes and Izzy got a great try.”

The visitors had asked the early questions, muscling up in the Waratahs’ 22 and it was only a succession of bell-ringing hits from Sitaleki Timani and Adam Ashley-Cooper that held the men from Cape Town at bay.

Pinning their opponents down, the Stormers chased everything and looked to force errors and it was a spill from Cam Crawford under a high ball that almost opened the scoring in the 12th minute. Bryan Habana pounced on the loose pill to grubber in behind but Folau was on hand to mop up. However, the Stormers eventually forced an offside penalty from the ensuing 5 metre scrum and Joe Pietersen – kicking at 85% in 2013 – was never going to miss.

By the end of the first quarter, the Tahs had shown plenty of endeavour but insufficient guile to find a breakthrough and were held scoreless for only the second time this season at the same point. They were maintaining their desire to move the ball but handling was letting them down in the red zone and the execution – as so often this year – did not match the desire.

It eventually took a bit of individual skill to open the door, a crossfield kick by Bernard Foley, plucked from the air by a leaping Folau who tapped it down to Crawford in support and the prolific winger span in the tackle as he fell to ground his fifth try in only four games in the Cambridge Blue. McKibbin couldn’t add the extras but the Tahs had the lead at 5-3.

Waratahs players meet their jubilant fans after the game

Folau was providing his own highlight reel as he then threw one of the biggest dummies you’ll see on any rugby field to get the Tahs out of trouble after a Foley clearance was charged down but the Stormers were menacing and it took another last ditch turn over from Tatafu Polota-Nau to disrupt another promising attack.

A forceful tackle from Ashley-Cooper on Gio Aplon kick-started a series of scuffles and handbags which continued up until the break, as the Stormers frustration at their lack of reward came to the surface. As the siren loomed, the Tahs created their own period of pressure and territory and a successful McKibbin penalty sent the home side to the sheds 8-3 to the good with a crowd of 17,042, their biggest of the season, backing their every step.

A contentious penalty for tackling the man without the ball allowed Pietersen to cancel out McKibbin’s strike and when Polota-Nau was pinged for holding on a few minutes later, the dead-eye fullback restored the visitors lead.

Hands in the ruck offered McKibbin an opportunity to strike back from a penalty as the Tahs huffed and puffed their way through their toughest period of the match. They began to look jaded and the error rate was slowly creeping up as the Stormers blanket defence took hold, choking the life out of any attempt to go wide and smashing anyone who dared to try and penetrate their wall of white.

Two more Pietersen penalties – either side of a failed field goal attempt from Foley – looked to have sealed the deal for the Stormers at 15-11 but it was the raft of much needed replacements in the last quarter, which included the return of Barnes and a debut for 21-yr-old 135kg wrecking ball, Will Skelton, that got the Tahs over the line.

As in the previous match at Allianz Stadium against the Chiefs, it was a case of the late, late show as Barnes and Folau combined to steal the match and the headlines. Barnes even added the icing to the cake with a penalty after the siren from just inside halfway, sending the players and a rapturous crowd into delight.

Next week, the Waratahs improving record will be severely tested when the conference topping Brumbies come to town.

NSW Waratahs 21 (Cam Crawford, Israel Folau tries; Brendan McKibbin 2 pens, Berrick Barnes con, pen) bt Stormers 15 (Joe Pietersen 5 pens)

Crowd: 17,042