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Chiefs survive furious final minutes to deal cruel blow to Blues
By Ned Lester
It was Spider-Man vs Black Panther in Hamilton on Saturday evening as the Chiefs hosted the Blues in Super Rugby Pacific’s Marvel-inspired Kids Round.
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The contest came down to the wire, with the Blues striking in the 74th minute to get just one point shy of a draw. But, through desperation and desire, the Chiefs would hold on to win 32-31.
The Chiefs were forced to weather a Blues storm early as the Aucklanders looked to build momentum with phase-play attack. The hosts were up to the challenge and repelled the visitors’ advances resolutely.
It was the hosts who also looked more assured on the attacking end, buoyed by the return to the starting unit of star fullback Shaun Stevenson, who was responsible for the opening try assist of the game. The one-time All Black flung a superb behind-the-back pass to find Daniel Rona, who scored, untouched.
The Chiefs secured a further three points through continued pressure, with Damian McKenzie making up for the missed conversion attempt.
The hosts’ discipline began to falter as the half wore on, and the Blues remained determined to apply pressure with their carry game, this time with the benefit of better territory.
As the penalty count grew in the Blues’ favour, the Chiefs were given a warning and subsequently conceded seven points as the Blues showed clean distribution skills to find AJ Lam in the corner.
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Halftime was fast approaching, and the Chiefs were keen to have the final say. They won back possession after a contestable kick on halfway and, a few strong carries later, found themselves five metres away from the Blues line. A wayward pass landed at the feet of Damian McKenzie, but leave it to the mercurial All Black to pick up the scraps, spin out of the tackles and score under the posts.
The Blues had four minutes to strike back before the half ended, and Mark Tele’a was up to the task of doing just that, benefitting from more Chiefs indiscipline, a Rieko Ioane offload and a sweet long pass from Harry Plummer.
The score was left 15-12 to the hosts at the break.
After a Mark Tele’a linebreak was foiled by a handling error just one minute into the second half, the Blues weren’t going to make the same mistake twice. Sam Nock recollected his own chip and chase, then found Patrick Tuipulotu in support, who was dragged down.
At the ensuing ruck, Naitoa Ah Kuoi was caught with his hand in the cookie jar and was handed a yellow card for interfering with the halfback as the Blues looked to score.
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A minute later, another wayward pass was snaffled up by Corey Evans, and the fullback dodged back infield, carving through a gap to put the Blues in front.
The Chiefs were able to chew through their 10 minutes down a man with strong set-piece work that won them territory and resulted in the Blues receiving a warning from the referee. After the handful of penalties, Xavi Taele was handed a yellow card.
Shortly after the sin-binning, Tupou Vaa’i provided the power and reach to get his team back on the right side of the scoreboard.
Minutes later, the Chiefs overpowered the Blues at a breakdown, and Damian McKenzie launched a dangerous counterattack. The ball was popped off the ground by the playmaker when dragged down, and Samipeni Finau made another linebreak, finding Leroy Carter, who then finally delivered the try assist to Cortez Ratima.
The Blues’ reserves filtered into the game and injected more energy into their attack. Even while down a man, the Aucklanders started to make metres and again entered the Chiefs’ 22. In need of points to claw their way back into the game, Marcel Renata stepped up for his side and powered over the line. The conversion brought the Chiefs’ lead back to three with 15 minutes remaining.
Before the Blues could build on that momentum, another Chiefs steal in the breakdown paved the way for another crack at three points, which McKenzie comfortably converted.
Trailing by six, the Blues pressed on into the Chiefs’ half, winning three consecutive penalties and playing under advantage. The welcome return of Stephen Perofeta provided the cross-field kick to Rieko Ioane, who scored out wide.
Young Xavi Taele was tasked with the conversion attempt to claim his side the lead but hit the post.
Fans of both clubs were on their feet as the final minutes played out, and even when the Blues spilled possession with a minute to spare, the game continued to produce thrilling moments. Emoni Narawa kicked the ball back down the Blues end, and Finlay Christie tried his hand at a hero play with the cross-field kick. It didn’t come off, and the Chiefs put the contest to an exhilarating end. Final score: 32-31.
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