The Plus500 Brumbies have beaten the Chiefs in New Zealand 26-14 in a game which saw the side play some sensational rugby, in attack and defence.
From the opening kick off, the Brumbies looked like a team on a mission.
The attacking flair, the willingness to offload was mesmerising and when Tom Banks crossed in the 10th minute off a fantastic piece of juggling skill from James Slipper, it was more than deserved.Lolesio’s conversions sweetened what was a dream start for the Brumbies.
Minutes later, it got even better. With a lineout on the Chiefs 22m line, the home side were thinking one thing; maul.
The Brumbies had a different plan. Playing quick off the back, the Brumbies backline whipped the ball wide to Solomone Kata, and with the Chiefs defence disconnected, Kata duly dotted down after dispatching Aaron Cruden.
In reality, the Brumbies could have had a number of five-pointers in the first 40, going close on a number of occasions. The Chiefs, hanging on, managed to get a foothold in the Brumbies zone but again, the visitors rose to the challenge.
Breaking out from their own half, Tevita Kuridrani put a perfect placed grubber down the Chiefs line.
The chase matched the kick, and the Brumbies managed to force Damian McKenzie into bobbling the ball.
Off the ensuing scrum, the Brumbies exerted their dominance as they did all half, and Pete Samu was able to calmly cross the line, the third of the night for a rampaging Brumbies side.
Samu’s effort, and Lolesio’s extras meant a 19-0 advantage for the Brumbies at the break.After the interval, it got even better for the Brumbies, Samu crossing for his second.
This time, the rampaging backrower showcased his unique power and pace, barging through the Chiefs defence. Lolesio’s conversion pushed the Brumbies lead to 26-0.
Far from beaten however, the Chiefs comeback started through Aaron Cruden, the veteran picking a perfect line from close range to score.
That effort got the home side’s tails up, and for the rest of the game, the Brumbies were forced, time and again to defend their line.
An Anton Lienert-Brown try aside, the Brumbies were up for the defensive fight, and with replacements coming on providing impact, not least the debutant Lachlan Lonergan, the Brumbies were able to hang on for a famous victory in Waiktato.
Plus500 Brumbies coach Dan McKellar said: “2014 was the last time we won over here in New Zealand, so we’re really glad to get that monkey off the back.
“We’ve had some challenges this week but this club is built around resilience and we’ve shown plenty of that over the last 10 days and to come over here against a quality team and get a result on their turf is incredibly pleasing.
“We’re not getting ahead of ourselves but we’ll enjoy tonight and get back to work in Canberra for a couple of days before the bye week.”
Plus500 Brumbies: 26 (Tries: Banks, Kata, Samu 2; Conversions: Lolesio 3) def Chiefs 14 (Tries: Crude, Lienert-Brown; Conversions: McKenzie 2)
