Dylan Pietsch scored twice against his former club as the Western Force ground out a crucial 20–17 victory over the Waratahs at Allianz Stadium, keeping their Super Rugby Pacific finals hopes alive while leaving the hosts staring down the barrel of another season without playoff rugby.
Key moments
10 mins – PENALTY FORCE: Ben Donaldson opened the scoring with a routine penalty from 30 metres out after Charlie Gamble was penalised for offside at the ruck. (Waratahs 0–3 Force)
33 mins – TRY WARATAHS: After sustained pressure near the Force line, Lawson Creighton threw a dummy, stepped past his defender and spun through to score. Sid Harvey converted. (Waratahs 7–3 Force)
37 mins – PENALTY WARATAHS: Sid Harvey extended the lead with a penalty from 40 metres after Mac Grealy was penalised for not releasing. (Waratahs 10–3 Force)
40 mins – TRY FORCE: A brilliant 21-phase build saw Dylan Pietsch step in off his wing with front-foot ball from Henry Robertson, spinning through two tackles to score on the stroke of half-time. Ben Donaldson converted. (Waratahs 10–10 Force)
Half-time: Waratahs 10–10 Force. A tight, physical contest. The Waratahs looked to be pulling away but Pietsch’s late strike levelled things. Max Jorgensen was outstanding under the high ball. Both Suaalii and Lomax had moments without dominating.
52 mins – TRY FORCE: Ben Donaldson split the defence from near halfway. Mac Grealy threw a brilliant offload to set up Pietsch for his second. Donaldson converted. (Waratahs 10–17 Force)
69 mins – PENALTY FORCE: Donaldson pushed the lead to 10 after a penalty for offside in front of the posts. (Waratahs 10–20 Force)
76 mins – TRY WARATAHS: Folau Fainga’a powered over from close range off a tap penalty. Harvey converted. (Waratahs 17–20 Force)
Full-time: Waratahs 17–20 Force
Match report
For all the billing as a showdown between code-hoppers Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii and Zac Lomax, Friday night’s Australian derby at Allianz Stadium belonged to a pair of former Waratahs who needed no introduction to the ground. Dylan Pietsch and Ben Donaldson dismantled their old club with a performance that was equal parts clinical and combative, dragging the Force to a victory that could yet define their season.
The much-hyped reunion between Suaalii and Lomax — one-time NSW State of Origin team-mates facing off for the first time in union — proved more theatre than substance. Suaalii, returning from the hamstring injury that had sidelined him since Round 2, managed just three carries all night. Lomax leapt for high balls, ran hard when he could and caused the odd headache with his positioning, but seldom found himself in the same postcode as his opposite number. Both were replaced on 59 minutes, two headline acts who never quite found their stage.
What the match lacked in star-turn glamour it made up for in attritional intensity. The Force arrived in Sydney fresh from the bye and with a clear plan: kick high and often, suffocate the Waratahs at the breakdown and let their pack do the talking. It worked. The visitors won the territory battle comprehensively — at one point in the second half, that figure sat at 85 per cent — and Carlo Tizzano was a menace at the ruck throughout, while Jeremy Williams and Darcy Swain controlled the lineout and provided a physical edge in the tight exchanges.
The first 30 minutes yielded just three points, a Donaldson penalty after Gamble was pinged for offside. The Waratahs held the unwanted record of converting just 27 per cent of entries into the opposition 22 into tries heading into the match, and that profligacy was on full display as they turned down an early shot at goal, only for Brandon Paenga-Amosa to win a turnover and snuff out the opportunity. Max Jorgensen was outstanding under the high ball, repeatedly defusing the aerial threat that the Force directed towards Lomax’s channel, but the hosts struggled to turn territory into points.
The breakthrough finally came in the 33rd minute. After multiple pick-and-go attempts from Samu, Lambert and Gamble had been repelled on the Force line, Creighton threw a dummy, stepped inside his marker and spun through to dot down. Harvey’s conversion and a subsequent penalty from 40 metres pushed the lead to 10–3, and the Waratahs appeared to be finding their rhythm.
Then came the sucker punch. The Force put together a remarkable 21-phase passage that stretched the length of the half’s final minutes, working patiently through the Waratahs’ defensive line. Pietsch, who had spent three seasons at the Waratahs before establishing himself as an elite winger in Perth, stepped in off his flank with front-foot ball from Robertson and muscled through two attempted tackles to score. Donaldson’s conversion on the stroke of half-time wiped out a seven-point deficit and sent the teams to the sheds level at 10–10.
The second half was a story of Force dominance and Waratahs desperation. Donaldson was the catalyst, splitting the home defence with a gliding break from near halfway shortly after the restart. The ball went to ground in the scramble but the Force showed the composure of a side that believed in what they were doing, recycling possession until Grealy threw a wonder of an offload to send Pietsch over for his second. It was the winger’s fourth try in three matches, underlining credentials that increasingly point towards a Wallabies squad place ahead of the July Tests.
The Force continued to camp inside the Waratahs’ half but could not land the knockout blow, with Harry Johnson-Holmes held up over the line and several other raids falling short through handling errors. Donaldson’s second penalty in the 69th minute, after the Waratahs were caught offside in front of their own posts, pushed the lead to 10 and appeared to seal the contest.
Folau Fainga’a’s 76th-minute try off the back of a tap penalty gave the Waratahs a late lifeline, but a Teddy Wilson knock-on moments later ended their hopes. The ball popped loose in the final play as the Waratahs hammered at the Force defence inside the 22, and the visitors pounced on it to run the clock dead.
Waratahs coach Dan McKellar did not mince his words afterwards, describing his side as having been bullied at the breakdown and squeezed to death by the Force’s territorial game. With just 32 per cent territory and a single line break all match, the Waratahs simply could not generate enough ball for their outside backs to make an impact. McKellar conceded that his team had been too slow to respond, only beginning to throw punches when they were already 10 points down.
Force coach Simon Cron acknowledged it had been an ugly contest but was unapologetic, noting that his side had created enough chances to win by more and needed to be more clinical inside the 22. The Force have now won three of their last four matches and sit just one point behind the Waratahs on the ladder. For a side that was written off a month ago, the trajectory is unmistakable.
Donaldson’s performance will not have escaped the attention of Wallabies selectors. As well as running the show and setting up both of Pietsch’s tries, the former Waratah nailed his conversions and penalties and directed the Force’s kicking game with a maturity that added weight to his claims on the national number 10 jersey under incoming coach Les Kiss. Pietsch, Tizzano, Williams and Paenga-Amosa were all outstanding, but it was Donaldson who pulled the strings.
Match details
Waratahs 17 (Tries: Creighton 33′, Fainga’a 76′; Conversions: Harvey 2/2; Penalties: Harvey 1/1)
Force 20 (Tries: Pietsch 40′, 52′; Conversions: Donaldson 2/2; Penalties: Donaldson 2/2)
Half-time: 10–10
Venue: Allianz Stadium, Sydney
Attendance: 10,906
Referee: Angus Gardner (Australia)
Assistant Referees: George Myers, Matt Kellahan
TMO: James Leckie
Teams
Waratahs: 15 Max Jorgensen, 14 Andrew Kellaway, 13 Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, 12 Joey Walton, 11 Sid Harvey, 10 Lawson Creighton, 9 Jake Gordon, 8 Pete Samu, 7 Charlie Gamble, 6 Angus Scott-Young, 5 Angus Blyth, 4 Matt Philip (c), 3 Siosifa Amone, 2 Ethan Dobbins, 1 Tom Lambert.
Replacements: 16 Folau Fainga’a, 17 Isaac Kailea, 18 Apolosi Ranawai, 19 Miles Amatosero, 20 Jamie Adamson, 21 Teddy Wilson, 22 Jack Debreczeni, 23 Triston Reilly.
Force: 15 Mac Grealy, 14 Zac Lomax, 13 George Bridge, 12 Hamish Stewart, 11 Dylan Pietsch, 10 Ben Donaldson, 9 Henry Robertson, 8 Nick Champion de Crespigny, 7 Carlo Tizzano, 6 Jeremy Williams (c), 5 Darcy Swain, 4 Franco Molina, 3 Misinale Epenisa, 2 Brandon Paenga-Amosa, 1 Tom Robertson.
Replacements: 16 Nic Dolly, 17 Sef Fa’agase, 18 Harry Johnson-Holmes, 19 Lopeti Faifua, 20 Will Harris, 21 Nathan Hastie, 22 Bayley Kuenzle, 23 Kurtley Beale.
What’s next
The Waratahs face a tough away trip to Dunedin to take on the Highlanders next weekend, while the Force host the ACT Brumbies in Canberra.
International2 weeks ago
International2 weeks ago
International2 weeks ago
International2 weeks ago
International3 weeks ago
Australia2 weeks ago
International1 week ago
International2 weeks ago