Stormers pay for not taking chances

01 May 2016 - 02:00 By CRAIG RAY
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The Stormers will feel aggrieved about being reduced to 14 men for more than quarter of the match, and point to that as a mitigating factor in their defeat against the Waratahs last night.

Leolin Zas during the DHL Stormers training session and press conference at High Performance Centre, Bellville on February 16, 2016 in Cape Town, South Africa.
Leolin Zas during the DHL Stormers training session and press conference at High Performance Centre, Bellville on February 16, 2016 in Cape Town, South Africa.
Image: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images

But in truth they only had themselves to blame after dominating the first half and failing to fully make it count.

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A controversial red card for Stormers wing Leolin Zas meant that the home team had to play the final 23 minutes with 14 men. Zas clumsily felledWaratahs flyhalf Bernard Foley in the air, but his eyes never left the ball and he slipped as he tried to jump.

It was a fatal blow for the home team, who conceded two tries while he was off, including the match-winner to flank Michael Hooper.

How the Stormers only led by two points at halftime is a mystery. They had 73% possession, had three times as many carries and made three times as many metres. Yet the Waratahs clung on, taking two chances while the Stormers were more wasteful.

They only had tries from Schalk Burger and Pieter-Steph du Toit to show for their efforts, while the Waratahs somehow scored twice in that period from just two chances.

Both Waratahs’ first-half tries came from Stormers defensive errors as the visiting centres cut the line. Kurtley Beale scored courtesy of hesitation between Damian de Allende and Juan de Jongh, and then Israel Folau powered over when Jean-Luc du Plessis dallied, forcing De Allende to be caught flat-footed.

Du Plessis had a fine game and was central to everything the Stormers did. His touch finder set up Burger’s try, while his pass freed lock Du Toit in the run up to the home team’s second try.

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Du Toit gave one of the most compelling second-row performances this ground has witnessed to almost single-handedly drag the Stormers to victory. The athletic lock had already contributed massively to the match for the first hour. With his side down to 14 men he found another gear and scored a second try and made countless tackles to try to keep the Waratahs at bay.

But with 14 men and considering the quality of the strike runners in the Waratahs lineup, the outcome felt inevitable. Even though Du Plessis’ third penalty briefly opened the gap again after Zas’ dismissal, the Stormers were eventually caught short. Left wing Rob Horne gave the visitors the lead in the 66th minute after the Stormers had simply run out of defenders.

When it comes to manipulating space there few better than a team packed with Wallabies.

SCORERS

Stormers – Tries: Schalk Burger, Pieter-Steph du Toit (2). Conversions: Jean-Luc Du Plessis n(3). Penalties: Du Plessis (3).

Waratahs – Tries: Kurtley Beale, Israel Folau, Rob Horne, Michael Hooper. Conversions: Bernard Foley (3). Penalties: Foley (2).

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