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The potentially match-winning kick that Australia's returning flyhalf would love to forget
By AAP
Western Force flyhalf Jono Lance says he’s still annoyed at himself for the penalty miss that cost his side victory against the Melbourne Rebels late last month, and he’s vowed to make amends.
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The Force remain winless and on bottom of the Super Rugby AU table following five straight defeats.
Their most recent outing was a 28-8 loss to the NSW Waratahs last Friday night.
The Force have blown match-winning positions in three of the five games they played.
The one that sticks out the most was the 25-20 extra-time loss to the Rebels.
With scores locked at 20-20 in normal time, Lance had the chance to nail what would have probably been the matchwinner when he lined up for a 22m penalty in the 76th minute.
Lance pulled the kick, and the Rebels went on to win in extra-time.
“I only think about it about six times a day at the moment,” Lance said when asked about the miss.
“That’s the risk you take when you’re goalkicking. I got all the ones before that, not too sure what happened in that one.
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“I’m annoyed at it because of how passionate the WA fans are back in Perth. That was a very tough pill to swallow, because I know that kick was for a lot of people who put in a lot of effort to get this team back to where it is.
“That’s driving me to keep working on that and keep honing my skills so that when I’m in that position again we’re celebrating a win and we get to sing the team song.”
The Force will be back in action on Friday night when they take on the unpredictable Queensland Reds at Cbus Super Stadium.
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The Reds sit second on the table with three wins and a draw from their six games.
Queensland will enter the match full of confidence after beating the Melbourne Rebels 19-3 last week in a masterful defensive display.
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But the performance came just a week after the Reds leaked six tries in a 45-12 loss to the Waratahs.
Lance said Queensland’s performance against the Rebels was more representative of what the Force can expect to encounter.
“That’s what we’re going on, because they’re an unreal team,” Lance said.
“I know a lot of the players there – I’ve trained and played with them recently. So I know the class they have there.
“But we’re a pretty classy bunch as well here.”
– Justin Chadwick
