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A clinical Brumbies outfit has defeated the Emirates Western Force, 41-7, at Canberra Stadium tonight.
The result was a disappointing one for the visitors after solid performances against the Crusaders and Hurricanes in the past fortnight.
The Force allowed the Brumbies to gallop out to a 29-0 half-time lead and, while the second term proved a more balance contest, Emirates Western Force Head Coach Michael Foley said his side could not afford to provide opposition sides with that number of opportunities moving forward.
“Playing against one of the top sides, we knew we had to execute early and we didn’t do that,” he said. “There were some unforced errors and the Brumbies were good enough with their line speed and defence – which we knew were going to be strong – to create some more for us.
“The Brumbies played very well but there were some times out there that we made errors that cost us.”
While the Force controlled the ball through the opening exchanges of the match, it was the Brumbies that drew first blood when fullback Jesse Mogg found a gap in the defensive line to score after five minutes.
The rest of the half belonged to the Brumbies, with the ACT side returning double the possession of the Force and capitalising through a try to Tevita Kuridrani, a double to winger Henry Speight and an additional nine points through the accurate goal-kicking of Christian Lealiifano to provide themselves a 29-point lead at the break.
While the Force made a promising start to the second term, peppering the Brumbies’ line, they were unable to land the final necessary scoring blow.
In contrast, the Brumbies managed to extend their lead when Matt Toomua set up winger Joe Tomane (51st minute), and Pat McCabe put replacement hooker Siliva Siliva over for his first Super Rugby try in the 69th minute.
The Emirates Western Force managed a late try through Matt Hodgson, when the Western Australian skipper powered over off the back of a rolling maul from an attacking lineout with six minutes remaining. Fullback Jayden Hayward added the extras to finalise the 41-7 result.
Foley said putting together back-to-back performances is a key challenge in the development of his young side.
“Every game we’re chasing that little bit of consistency in our performance,” he said.
“We’ve got a lot of young guys that are hitting highs some weeks but not necessarily able to back that up; but over time you develop that consistency and certainly playing the derby games mean a lot to us and that’s why we’re so disappointed tonight.”
The Emirates Western Force will return to Perth to face the Reds at nib Stadium on Saturday, 4 May.
2013 Super Rugby – Week 11
Saturday, 27 April 2013 at Canberra Stadium, Canberra
Kick-off: 7.40pm (local)/5.40pm (local)
Brumbies 41 (Henry Speight 2; Siliva Siliva, Jesse Mogg, Tevita Kuridrani, Joe Tomane tries; Christian Lealiifano 4/6 conversions, 1/1 penalties) defeated Emirates Western Force 7 (Matt Hodgson try; Jayden Hayward 1/1 conversion)
Emirates Western Force
1. Pek Cowan, 2. Heath Tessmann, 3. Salesi Ma’afu, 4. Toby Lynn, 5. Sam Wykes, 6. Ben McCalman, 7. Matt Hodgson (c), 8. Richard Brown, 9. Alby Mathewson, 10. Sam Norton-Knight, 11. Ed Stubbs, 12. Kyle Godwin, 13. Junior Rasolea, 14. Patrick Dellit, 15. Jayden Hayward. Res: 16. James Hilterbrand, 17. Kieran Longbottom, 18. Rory Walton, 19. Chris Alcock, 20. Mick Snowden, 21. Sias Ebersohn, 22. Winston Stanley.
Coach: Michael Foley
Brumbies
1. Scott Sio, 2. Stephen Moore, 3. Ben Alexander, 4. Peter Kimlin, 5. Sam Carter, 6. Fotu Auelua, 7. George Smith, 8. Ben Mowen (c), 9. Nic White, 10. Matt Toomua, 11. Joe Tomane, 12. Christian Lealiifano, 13. Tevita Kuridrani, 14. Henry Speight, 15. Jesse Mogg. Res: 16. Siliva Siliva, 17. Ruaidhri Murphy, 18. Leon Power, 19. Colby Faingaa, 20. Ian Prior, 21. Pat McCabe, 22. Robbie Coleman.
Coach: Jake White
Yellow Cards: Stephen Moore (44th minute)
Red Cards: Nil
Referee: Angus Gardner
Referee: 12,517
By the clock
Min Details Score
5 Jesse Mogg Try 5-0
6 Christian Lealiifano Missed Con 5-0
18 Henry Speight Try 10-0
18 Christian Lealiifano Conversion 12-0
21 Christian Lealiifano Penalty Goal 15-0
25 Tevita Kuridrani Try 20-0
26 Christian Lealiifano Conversion 22-0
39 Henry Speight Try 27-0
40 Christian Lealiifano Conversion 29-0
44 Stephen Moore Sin Bin 29-0
51 Joseph Tomane Try 34-0
53 Christian Lealiifano Conversion 36-0
69 Siliva Siliva Try 41-0
70 Christian Lealiifano Missed Con 41-0
74 Matt Hodgson Try 41-5
75 Jayden Hayward Conversion 41-7