Chiefs give Auckland the Blues
A Liam Messam try lifts the Chiefs to an 11-8 win in torrential conditions to secure a Super Rugby playoff spot.
The Chiefs kept alive their quest for a third straight Super Rugby title when they beat the Blues 11-8 in a rain-drenched match to capture a playoffs spot in their last match of the regular season.
The win lifted the Chiefs from eighth to a temporary fourth place at the start of the final round in which nine teams remained in contention for top-six placings.
The Blues, in ninth place and needing to win by a clear margin of 38 points to have any chance of reaching the playoffs, were assailed by a remarkable series of misfortunes, and became the first team eliminated from the race in the final weekend.
They first lost their captain, flanker Luke Braid, and All Blacks prop Tony Woodcock to injuries before the match began, then lost stand-in captain and hooker Keven Mealamu to a calf injury after only 18 minutes.
The Blues also lost All Blacks center Ma’a Nonu, in his last match for the franchise, to a yellow card late in the first half.
They had almost 90 percent of territory through the first 20 minutes, gave up the chance to kick for goal from the six penalties they received in that period, and crossed the Chiefs’ line three times without being able to ground the ball.
Chiefs weather storm
The Chiefs weathered that metaphorical storm, then asserted themselves by balancing the ledger of territory and possession, then taking the lead with an Aaron Cruden penalty – the only points of the first half.
Flanker Liam Messam then gave the Chiefs their decisive lead with an intercept try from 50 meters out in the 48th minute.
A Cruden penalty in the 62nd minute put them ahead 11-3 and they needed that margin when the Blues scored a try through replacement winger George Moala in the 69th minute.
The Chiefs clung to their three-point lead through the last 11 minutes, saved again by resolute defence.
“We probably made harder work of it than we needed to,” Cruden said. “But we knew it was going to be a tough cookie here against the Blues.
“I’m stoked for the boys. They showed a lot of character, especially in that first 20 minutes and we were able to hang on in the end.”
The Blues suffered their sixth straight loss to the Chiefs and finished the season at the bottom of the New Zealand conference, though they stayed in playoffs contention for the length of the regular season.