Navy Canberra Vikings fall to Rebels

Christian Lealiifano (SMP Images)

The Melbourne Rebels have snatched a spot in the Mazda Australian Rugby Championship semi-finals after posting an 11-0 victory over the Navy Canberra Vikings at Olympic Park Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

On a wet and overcast day in Melbourne, the Rebels led 3-0 at half-time and increased their lead shortly after the break when Matt Cockbain was awarded a questionable try, before inside centre Jack Farrer sealed the match with a late penalty goal.

Cockbain was tremendous for the Rebels all day, but it was his try that was the major talking point of the match.

The big lock seemed to lose the ball as he was reaching out to touch down, but the video referee deemed there was enough downward pressure to award the try.

Along with Cockbain, winger Digby Ioane and halves pairing Dan Kelly and Luke Burgess performed well for the home side, while teenager Christian Leallifano continued his impressive recent form for the Navy Canberra Vikings with another polished display.

The Rebels made the early running and took a 3-0 lead after five minutes when fullback Nathan Trist slotted a simple penalty goal after Navy Canberra Vikings captain Alistair Campbell was penalised for offside.

The home side continued to attack but a well organised Navy Canberra Vikings defence kept the Rebels out on numerous occasions, Ioane going the closest after a dashing 50 metre run.

Rebels skipper David Croft was yellow carded for an infringement at the breakdown, and the Navy Canberra Vikings almost made the most of their numerical advantage when Julian Salvi made a break and seemed certain to score a try.

However, the home side escaped when Rebels outside centre James Lew punched the ball out of Salvi's hands when the flanker merely needed to plant the ball down.

After Trist missed the opportunity to double the Rebels advantage from a penalty goal after 35 minutes, Croft re-entered the fray shortly after and the inspirational flanker attempted to spark the home side into action.

Strong defence from both teams ensured the scoreline remained 3-0 to Melbourne at half-time, and it was the Rebels on the attack one again shortly after the resumption.

Ioane produced another barnstorming run and Cockbain pounced to score the opening five-pointer of the afternoon, under questionable circumstances

Teeming rain set in shortly after as both teams struggled with the slippery conditions as the ball tuned into a something closely resembling a piece of soap.

The Navy Canberra Vikings tried hard to hit back, but handling errors cost them dearly as the Rebels continued to dominate field position with a strong breeze at their back and a solid kicking game serving them well.

The match was all over when Farrer converted a penalty goal from 25 metres out after 72 minutes, sealing a semi-final berth for the Rebels, and a match-up against minor premiers the Western Sydney Rams next Sunday.

Melbourne Rebels 11 (Matt Cockbain try; Nathan Trist, Jack Farrer penalty goals) defeated Navy Canberra Vikings 0.