Rugby: Morale-boosting win for Blues

The Blues' Ihaia West is caught by a Bulls tackler. Photo Getty
The Blues' Ihaia West is caught by a Bulls tackler. Photo Getty
The Blues have finished their week from hell with a morale-boosting 23-18 victory over the Bulls at Eden Park which they will rightly be very proud of.

It was an ideal way for them to prove their togetherness in the wake of continued speculation over John Kirwan's coaching future, but, as has become traditional for this franchise, there was also a big downside.

Blues skipper Steven Luatua's dislocated shoulder, which forced him off in the second half, will probably rule him out for the rest of the Super Rugby season.

Already a battered figure this season, he took the leadership duties from Jerome Kaino who was injured a fortnight ago and the Blues might be forced to look further afield for a captain after this latest problem.

"It seems like he's dislocated it out and it's come back in so he'll be a while we think," Kirwan said.

Apart from that, there was much for a small crowd of about 8000 to cheer about. Wracked by controversy all week, the players hung tough and maintained their remarkable record at their fortress against a tough, but slightly limited, Bulls.

"I was proud of the guys," Kirwan said. "I thought our discipline was a bit off in the first half and they were kicking us down and mauling, but I was just really pleased that we hung in the fight. We knew we needed to play some field position in the second half and try to score points and I thought some of the young guys really stepped up."

George Moala's try, after a sustained, clinical build-up, put the Blues ahead with 12 minutes remaining and Ihaia West's conversion put the margin past three points. The breakthrough came after a fair amount of pressure from the Bulls, and in the absence of loose forward Luatua -- with lock Josh Bekhuis also flat on his back receiving treatment.

It was a good reward, with Blake Gibson shining as Luatua's replacement, and Francis Saili taking the right option and spearing a break near the prone Bekhuis.

Saili had a chance to score another which would have sealed it, but his hands let him down. However, his spot tackle with two minutes remaining which earned his side a penalty was crucial.

The Bulls will rue this as one which got away and Marcel van der Merwe might not look back on the game with fondness. The Bulls tighthead prop had a try ruled out in the opening minutes due to obstruction by Phillip van der Merwe on Akira Ioane and was then bamboozled by the pace and swerve of Blues fullback Lolagi Visinia, who went over from 40m.

Visinia's teammates began to follow his example. Second-five Moala, after a sketchy start, bulldozed defenders at will and even little halfback Jamison Gibson-Park made gains up the middle.

They looked a chance to score every time they got into the Bulls half, but unfortunately for them the reverse was true too. After surviving that early scare when van der Merwe's try was ruled out, there was no doubt about the one scored by Jan Serfontein, the second-five going over thanks to Handre Pollard's assistance.

Serfontein's second try came from a scrum on halfway, and, while the second-five's pass to left wing Bjorn Basson looked forward in the build-up, it wasn't worth another viewing according to referee Mike Fraser.

In the end it didn't matter. A memorable week which threatened to tear the Blues apart ended with the players looking more united than ever.

Blues 23 (Lolagi Visinia, George Moala tries; Ihaia West 3 pens, 2 cons), Bulls 18 (Jan Serfontein 2 tries; Handre Pollard 2 pens, con). Halftime: 16-13.

Highlight: The Blues' unity - both on attack and defence. They had to sustain a long period on defence after the break as the Bulls slowed it down and dug in, but they bounced back and still had the energy for the crucial team try for George Moala.

Lowlight: For the Blues, the way their scrum was taken apart by, admittedly, a big and powerful Bulls pack, was a bit of a worry. Their defensive lineout also failed to trouble the Bulls, but they got the result in the end.

By Patrick McKendry

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