Opening try: Tim Nanai-Williams
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The Chiefs were crowned Super Rugby champions for the first time after brushing aside the toothless Sharks 37-6 in a one-sided final at Hamilton's Waikato Stadium on Saturday.
Whilst the hosts were deserved winners and full value for their win, the Sharks were always going to be at a significant disadvantage following their taxing travelling schedule - their last stop ultimately proving to be a bridge too far for the visitors.
Besides the opening 20 minutes of the game, the season finale was sadly a mis-match as the Chiefs outplayed their travel-weary South African counterparts in all facets of play. All the Sharks had to do was turn up and the Chiefs did the rest.
There wasn't any anxious moments as you would expect in a final compared to last week's two nerve-racking encounters. Instead, relaxed Chiefs fans could sit back and watch their team dismantle the opposition.
Tries by Tim Nanai-Williams, Kane Thompson, Lelia Masaga and Sonny Bill Williams ensured that the Chiefs were always well clear of their opponents.
Fly-half Aaron Cruden delivered another stunning performance and he too ensured that his side stayed in control of proceedings by knocking over all four conversions and three penalties, while the Sharks' only replies came from the boot of fly-half Frederic Michalak.
The French international was not as hot as he was during the play-offs and semis, whilst the returning Patrick Lambie also failed to hit the mark.
Tactically the Sharks dished up their poorest showing of the season while their normally solid defence crumbled as the match wore on. Then there were also a number of unforced errors that added to the team's frustration, and the previously dominant Sharks forwards were put through their paces by a powerhouse Chiefs pack.
The Sharks did enjoy the better of the opening exchanges after a JP Pietersen kick drilled the Chiefs into the corner and Ryan Kankowski stole the line-out. But their only reward was a sole penalty by Michalak before the Chiefs began to work their way into the game with superior forward power and a more accurate kicking game.
A 10-minute period of relentlessly testing the Sharks' defence ended when Chiefs centre Andrew Horrell recovered a Cruden chip kick knocked on by Lambie, and a Williams' break led to Tim Nanai-Williams scoring out wide.
Cruden landed the touchline conversion and two penalties after the Du Plessis brothers Jannie and Bismarck both infringed to have the Chiefs ahead 13-3 at half-time.
Chiefs hooker Mahonri Schwalger put his side in command at the start of the second half when he stole the kick-off from the Sharks forwards. From an attacking scrum, number eight Kane Thompson was able to pick up the ball and run through a huge gap to score the Chiefs' second try.
Replacement wing Lelia Masaga put the match firmly in the Chiefs' grasp with 20 minutes remaining when he snapped up a misdirected Keegan Daniel pass and raced 50 metres to the line, stepping deftly around Lambie on the way.
Cruden landed the conversion and a further penalty before Williams, in his final match for the Chiefs, capped off the scoring with a try in the closing minutes which he followed with a celebratory dive into the crowd.
Man of the match: Tough one! The Chiefs back three were always in the thick of it, while prop Sona Taumalolo was once again a bull-dozer on attack. But the official gong went to co-captain Liam Messam after the match, and we find it pretty hard to argue with that choice.
Moment of the match: It has to be SBW's leap of joy into the home crowd after scoring his try. A sight to behold and one never seen before as far as we can recall in the beautiful game...
Villain of the match: No yellow or red cards shown, but Chiefs prop Ben Tameifuna can thank his lucky stars after his high hit on Ryan Kankowski wasn't picked up by the officials.
The scorers:
For Chiefs:
Tries: Nanai-Williams, Thompson, Masaga, Williams
Cons: Cruden 4
Pens: Cruden 3
For Sharks:
Pens: Michalak 2
Chiefs: 15 Robbie Robinson, 14 Tim Nanai-Williams, 13 Andrew Horrell, 12 Sonny Bill Williams, 11 Asaeli Tikoirotuma, 10 Aaron Cruden, 9 Tawera Kerr-Barlow, 8 Kane Thompson, 7 Tanerau Latimer, 6 Liam Messam, 5 Brodie Retallick, 4 Craig Clarke (c), 3 Ben Tameifuna, 2 Mahonri Schwalger, 1 Sona Taumalolo.
Replacements: 16 Hika Elliot, 17 Ben Afeaki, 18 Michael Fitzgerald, 19 Sam Cane, 20 Brendon Leonard, 21 Jackson Willison, 22 Lelia Masaga.
Sharks: 15 Pat Lambie, 14 Louis Ludik, 13 JP Pietersen, 12 Paul Jordaan, 11 Lwazi Mvovo, 10 Frederic Michalak, 9 Charl McLeod, 8 Ryan Kankowski, 7 Marcell Coetzee, 6 Keegan Daniel (c), 5 Anton Bresler, 4 Willem Alberts, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16 Craig Burden, 17 Wiehahn Herbst, 18 Steven Sykes, 19 Jean Deysel, 20 Jacques Botes, 21 Meyer Bosman, 22 Riaan Viljoen.
Referee: Steve Walsh
Comments
Carpelone says...
ruckingkiwi
The second try was an obstruction from Latimer, full stop.
The Sharks however were never going to win that game.
The point is that I like fair play from both sides, the Chiefs were cynical but they did not need to be.
Posted 09:02 10th August 2012
ruckingkiwi says...
I'm not sure why some people bother to watch rugby when all they do is roll out the same complaints about the referees week after week, errr unless their team wins that is. Trinats is a prime example, another week and another excuse. I have never heard so many excuses about injuries and referees as I have from Trinats this year.. are there any other nominations?
mixedup says "Latimer blocked Daniel from tackling Thompson", well actually, the scrum was up and Latimer broke, it was DuPlessis fault Daniel wasn't in a position to make the tackle.. also it was a feeble effort from Michelak. The strong Chiefs scrum created that try, not Latimer.
Also, "Michalak was tackled off the ball by Retallick as he went to tackle Kerr-Barlow".. I'm not 100% sure on this but I do remember Retallick making a clean-out on Michalek, is this the incident you mean? I guess it comes down to the referees interprtation of a clean-out vs his interpretation of being tackled off the ball. I doubt it was cynical play as you suggest?
Posted 01:04 08th August 2012
7ton says...
Trinats2
Haha and I could predict team A to win almost every time as long as they played better than team B
Posted 00:24 08th August 2012
BillyMutt2 says...
@Wallaroo: fair enough. Can't stand it when people like those two and others have to hide behind silly excuses all the time - but I could have let that wait for another day.
On to the Rugby Championship!
Posted 04:16 07th August 2012
Wallaroo says...
@BillyMutt, sorry should read - not wanting to be included
Posted 13:49 06th August 2012
Wallaroo says...
@BillyMutt, fair enough wanting to be included with martinmarais and captkirk; and agree very different reasons. They are simply just childish. You strike me as a lot more mature, so don't understand why you can't just enjoy the win instead of marring your comments with outbursts. You too articulate and clever for that mate, focus on the good blokes and let the children play in their own back yard (even if the fence is imaginary lol).
Posted 13:47 06th August 2012
Trinats2 says...
mixedup:
You are mixed up, it was the SARU that wanted a conf system (ironically to avoid travel) and not "SANZAR and John O'Neil especially"
Maybe you're not mixedup and just fall victim to media !
Agree about Walsh, but it applied to both teams, diving in at the ruck, coming in from the side, hands in the ruck and lazy runners. It benefited the Chiefs as they had the ascendancy (home advantage and a kiwi born ref) and got the 50/50 calls.
It is why Kiwis get frustrated with NH refs as they correctly police the rucks and it's not a free for all. As one ex-super star said with reference to hands in the ruck while off this feet "McCaw had his boots laced up on his knees"
Posted 12:20 06th August 2012
APV1 says...
Meh.
I was hoping to see some fantastic rugby from both sides, but they obviously felt that mediocre was good enough. Exept the Sharks couldn't even muster mediocre and went for below par.
Thank goodness it's less than a month until the Premiership kicks off!
Posted 10:08 06th August 2012
mixedup says...
All my fears about Steve Walsh were realized in the final.
The Chiefs were the better side. They played the best rugby and deserved to raise the trophy.
That being said, I believe that Steve's weaknesses as a referee skewed the result.
In my mind, the best refs have two essential qualities (1) technically excellent (know all the rules etc.) (2) have a good understanding and feel for the game. Think Kaplan for technical excellence and Mark Lawrence for understanding and feel. The best referees are technically excellent with an above average feel and understanding - think Joubert.
Steve has never been shy of making the big decisions that are obvious e.g. a punch in front of him. But he has always been slow to discern and clamp down on patterns illegal behavior. An example: a clever and cynical team will make multiple try stopping infringements in the red zone, but ensure they are different offences by different players. A technical referee will blow them as separate incidents,a great referee will see the patterns, understand the behavior and blow accordingly.
In the final, it was obvious that the Sharks would put max. 2 people into a contact point & the rest would defend from the fringes (the A-Defender) outwards. The Chiefs' tactics was to drag/interfere with the A-Defender and fringe defenders in order to create spaces to exploit. This was deliberate, cynical and illegal.
It took Steve over 30 minutes and the 5/6th infringement to give a penalty. Did he follow up on this - no. Michalak was tackled off the ball by Retallick as he went to tackle Kerr-Barlow - a try resulted. Latimer blocked Daniel from tackling Thompson - a try resulted. Over 14 points down and chasing the game...it was all over. Shame for all the neutrals.
In this case, a failure to referee the patterns and tactics in the game skewed the result. Luckily it did not change the result.
Posted 06:25 06th August 2012
mixedup says...
First up, congrats to the Chiefs. Their brand of rugby is why we all love the game and watch it at 3a.m.! They were clinical, skillful, technically accurate, tactically astute, and executed well.
Second, Shame on you SANZAR and John O'Neil especially. We watch rugby to be entertained by good competitive rugby as per point 1 above, not to pay to watch mismatches that are caused by your greed. SANZAR should ensure that controllable variables do not determine or significantly influence the match outcome. No team (OK maybe those blasted Crusaders) could compete with that kind of schedule. The final should be a celebration of the best teams, properly rested, properly prepared, with an equal opportunity to play at their best. Then it is up to the players to give us the best on the field. This will never happen while there is no break between the final and the semi final. Even if both finals teams are from 1 country, the semi-finals are so intense (as they were this year) that there is 0 chance that both teams will be at their peak for the final. At least one side will be shattered. With 91.67% of finals won by the home side - the stats speak for themselves. When good sides are hammered in the final by sides they were competitive with (Chiefs by the Bulls and Sharks by the Chiefs) we have got to ask....is that what we want to watch. I so NO. We want to watch the best side win, with both sides given an equal chance to be at their best and to perform at their best. That will never happen while we keep quiet and let greed rule our sport.
Posted 05:45 06th August 2012
Trinats2 says...
Well done Chiefs. And happy for Kiwilad.
Justice, apologies for the jet-lagged Shorks. I'll fix you up on your loss.
7ton:
I did say "Sharks by 11 !!!! Provided they don't fall off the pace in last 20 mins" they fell off the pace in the first 20 mins !!!, they were looking good until the wheels fell of. And if I recall leading.
Posted 03:45 06th August 2012
The_Claw says...
Unbelievable performance in the back-end of the season from the Sharks, to win 6 from 7 to make the playoffs and then pull off two great upsets. But there's really not much more you can say about the final than what this article said: "a bridge too far".
Classy speech from Craig Clarke I thought, everyone gives the "full credit to the opposition" line but he backed it up by personally singling out Bismarck for congratulations on this 100th game. Also I lol'd at his failure to name any of the Chiefs' sponsors.
Posted 01:27 06th August 2012
BillyMutt2 says...
@Wallaroo: dude I don't mind you calling me pathetic, but at least don't include me in the same group as @martinmarais and @captkirk :)
Maybe you should go back and look at their (and my) posts again - I'm not sure where the heck you stand, given that you call diametrically opposite sides of the equation both "pathetic". Do you actually have an opinion?
Posted 17:54 05th August 2012
Wallaroo says...
Well done Chiefs, definitely deserved to be the Super15 champs.
Unfortunately for the second time now we have seen a side that should have performed better derailed by too much travel. In 2009 the Chiefs looked strong for 20 minutes and then faded, in 2012 the Sharks looked strong for 20 minutes and then faded - both teams on their 3rd week of international travel.
Having said this imo the final was definitely between the 2 best teams in the comp, an additional week off in between would have done them both justice.
Martinmarais, captkirk and BillyMutt what a pathetic bunch you are.
ArmchairGeneral, great question, they obviously underestimated the Chiefs.
Posted 13:10 05th August 2012
KiwiJoe says...
Glad the Chiefs topped off a great year with the title, well done to the whole crew, on and off the paddock.
Commiserations to the Sharks, a flight too many in the end but at least you were there and hopefully this can be built upon for 2013
Posted 12:07 05th August 2012
KiwiLad says...
If its any consolation for Saffa fans, I see you are ahead of us on the Olympic medal table, albeit only just.
However Australia lie well below us both, quite familiar really.
Now wait for trinats and his shackledragging cousins to tell us how the system is wrong, the umpires are bent or inept. and Aus is the greatest sporting nation on earth.
Posted 10:23 05th August 2012
powerplay says...
CHIEFS!!!
Posted 07:54 05th August 2012
new_j4a says...
@7ton. Thanks for the concern. I am stuck on top of a large rock outside Dumbulla Sri Lanka and didn't have signal so missed the opportunity to connect with my bookie. An earlier "insurance" bet I took out on the Chiefs did pay out though....so there'll be a little curry on the rice for a week or two. On Trinats powers of neutral prediction, he has been in the 70s in years gone by...far better than PR for eg
Posted 07:48 05th August 2012
cuw3100 says...
Why are all SA fans moaning about the Sharks' fatigue factor ?? Crusaders have been facing it for a couple of years and even when the blues got hammered it was the case. In fact last year Crusaders travelled more than an International team.
SANZAR seriously needs to consider this format and the number of teams. IMHO a SUPER 12 would be the ideal to bring out the quality and ensure player welfare. Even SA fans think they have one too many franchises , the same thought shared by OZ fans.
Reducing number of teams to 4 from each country will strengthen the pools with better players to counter the injury factor. It will reduce the number of matches and the length of the season. When the matches are more competitive there will be more spectators.
Posted 06:20 05th August 2012
tweedledee49 says...
@Stellenbosched, agree with Tameifuna...I love my Chiefs but that was really really stupid and couldve been very bad for Kankowski, thank goodness hes like a rock...wouldve been terrible if he got injured.
Posted 04:25 05th August 2012