Publications
Partners
Hamilton - The Chiefs broke their home-ground hoodoo and brought high-flying Vodacom Super Rugby newcomers the Melbourne Rebels back to earth with a 38-10 victory on Saturday.
The Chiefs outscored the Rebels by four tries to one, all converted by flyhalf Stephen Donald, who also landed four penalties for a match haul of 18 points.
The bonus-point win was the Chiefs' first taste of success this season and their first on their home ground since they beat the Hurricanes in the Super 14 semi-finals nearly two years ago.
The Rebels had arrived in Hamilton full of confidence after securing a victory in their second ever match when they beat the Brumbies last week but they soon found success can be fickle.
In a match of contrasting styles they came off second best. The Rebels relied on the powerful boots of Danny Cipriani and Mark Gerrard to force the Chiefs on the back foot.
But it was not enough to counter the home side's determination to grind their way into attacking positions in the wet conditions through their well-drilled forward pack.
"We just tried to get a good platform for our backs and the forwards did well," said stand-in captain Liam Messam, who took over the leadership from Mils Muliaina who went off injured early in the match.
"Execution let us down in the last two weeks and to do it in this type of weather is pleasing."
Rebels captain Stirling Mortlock said his side was still developing at Super Rugby level and would improve.
"We've got to be a little bit smarter about how we do things. We're learning on the run and tonight we weren't good enough."
Donald and Cipriani exchanged early penalties and the score remained locked at 3-3 until the Chiefs broke through with an unanswered 23-point scoring burst either side of half-time.
In the countdown to the break Donald landed two further penalties and converted a try set up by Isaac Ross and finished by Sitiveni Sivivatu for the Chiefs to turn with a 16-3 lead.
When play resumed, Donald landed another penalty and converted Leila Masaga's first try after the right wing was put in the clear by veteran centre Tana Umaga.
The Rebels showed signs they were not a spent force when powerful backrow Gareth Delve wrestled his way across the line, with Cipriani's conversion closing the gap to 10-26 with 20 minutes to play.
But in the closing stages the Chiefs came back with a try for replacement front rower Sona Taumalolo and a second for Masaga following an 80-metre burst up the touchline after he was again put into space by Umaga.
The Chiefs next week travel to Wellington to play the Hurricanes while the Rebels return home to host the Sharks.
Teams:
Chiefs:
15. Mils Muliaina (captain), 14. Lelia Masaga, 13. Dwayne Sweeney, 12. Tana Umaga, 11. Sitiveni Sivivatu, 10. Stephen Donald, 9. Brendon Leonard; 8. Liam Messam, 7. Tanerau Latimer, 6. Scott Waldrom, 5. Isaac Ross, 4. Craig Clarke, 3. Nathan White, 2. Aled de Malmanche, 1. Ben May
Substitutes: 16. Sona Taumalolo, 17. Hila Elliot, 18. Romana Graham, 19. Steven Setephano, 20. Taniela Moa, 21. Mike Delany, 22. Tim Nanai-Williams
Rebels:
15. Mark Gerrard, 14. Lachlan Mitchell, 13. Stirling Mortlock (captain), 12. Julian Huxley, 11. Cooper Vuna, 10. Danny Cipriani, 9. Nick Phipps, 8. Gareth Delve, 7. Michael Lipman, 6. Jarrod Saffy, 5. Kevin O'Neill, 4. Adam Byrnes, 3. Greg Somerville, 2. Ged Robinson, 1. Nic Henderson
Substitutes: 16. Heath Tessmann, 17. Laurie Weeks, 18. Alister Campbell, 19. Tom Chamberlain, 20. Richard Kingi, 21. Afusipa Taumoepeau, 22. Peter Betham
The Chiefs outscored the Rebels by four tries to one, all converted by flyhalf Stephen Donald, who also landed four penalties for a match haul of 18 points.
The bonus-point win was the Chiefs' first taste of success this season and their first on their home ground since they beat the Hurricanes in the Super 14 semi-finals nearly two years ago.
The Rebels had arrived in Hamilton full of confidence after securing a victory in their second ever match when they beat the Brumbies last week but they soon found success can be fickle.
In a match of contrasting styles they came off second best. The Rebels relied on the powerful boots of Danny Cipriani and Mark Gerrard to force the Chiefs on the back foot.
But it was not enough to counter the home side's determination to grind their way into attacking positions in the wet conditions through their well-drilled forward pack.
"We just tried to get a good platform for our backs and the forwards did well," said stand-in captain Liam Messam, who took over the leadership from Mils Muliaina who went off injured early in the match.
"Execution let us down in the last two weeks and to do it in this type of weather is pleasing."
Rebels captain Stirling Mortlock said his side was still developing at Super Rugby level and would improve.
"We've got to be a little bit smarter about how we do things. We're learning on the run and tonight we weren't good enough."
Donald and Cipriani exchanged early penalties and the score remained locked at 3-3 until the Chiefs broke through with an unanswered 23-point scoring burst either side of half-time.
In the countdown to the break Donald landed two further penalties and converted a try set up by Isaac Ross and finished by Sitiveni Sivivatu for the Chiefs to turn with a 16-3 lead.
When play resumed, Donald landed another penalty and converted Leila Masaga's first try after the right wing was put in the clear by veteran centre Tana Umaga.
The Rebels showed signs they were not a spent force when powerful backrow Gareth Delve wrestled his way across the line, with Cipriani's conversion closing the gap to 10-26 with 20 minutes to play.
But in the closing stages the Chiefs came back with a try for replacement front rower Sona Taumalolo and a second for Masaga following an 80-metre burst up the touchline after he was again put into space by Umaga.
The Chiefs next week travel to Wellington to play the Hurricanes while the Rebels return home to host the Sharks.
Teams:
Chiefs:
15. Mils Muliaina (captain), 14. Lelia Masaga, 13. Dwayne Sweeney, 12. Tana Umaga, 11. Sitiveni Sivivatu, 10. Stephen Donald, 9. Brendon Leonard; 8. Liam Messam, 7. Tanerau Latimer, 6. Scott Waldrom, 5. Isaac Ross, 4. Craig Clarke, 3. Nathan White, 2. Aled de Malmanche, 1. Ben May
Substitutes: 16. Sona Taumalolo, 17. Hila Elliot, 18. Romana Graham, 19. Steven Setephano, 20. Taniela Moa, 21. Mike Delany, 22. Tim Nanai-Williams
Rebels:
15. Mark Gerrard, 14. Lachlan Mitchell, 13. Stirling Mortlock (captain), 12. Julian Huxley, 11. Cooper Vuna, 10. Danny Cipriani, 9. Nick Phipps, 8. Gareth Delve, 7. Michael Lipman, 6. Jarrod Saffy, 5. Kevin O'Neill, 4. Adam Byrnes, 3. Greg Somerville, 2. Ged Robinson, 1. Nic Henderson
Substitutes: 16. Heath Tessmann, 17. Laurie Weeks, 18. Alister Campbell, 19. Tom Chamberlain, 20. Richard Kingi, 21. Afusipa Taumoepeau, 22. Peter Betham
