Waratahs romp home in Fiji
January 30 2010
The Waratahs sent out a signal to their Super 14 rivals on Saturday with a 83-15 demolition of the Fiji Warriors in a warm up match at Wade Park in Orange.
A strong crowd of 6623 turned out to see NSW score 13 tries to two, with coach Chris Hickey able to test a number of combinations with a total of 29 players used across the four quarters.
Tom Carter opened the scoring in the sixth minute after the Tahs backs put the ball through the hands following a break by rampaging wing Nemani Nadolo.
The forwards followed up with a try of their own through Al Baxter, before Koroi Yavala kicked a penalty to put the visitors on the board.
The midfield pairing of Berrick Barnes and Kurtley Beale was working well, and it was the latter who laid on the final try of the first quarter by putting Tatafu Polota-Nau into a gap.
Nadolo kept up his bustling running in the second stanza and was rewarded with a try early on, and when Beale backed up to score after some more strong play through the backs, the Tahs led 33-3 after 30 minutes.
The back three stayed in the action with Peter Betham crossing, before receiving a great ball from Sosene Anesi to score a second right on half-time.
A new look team took the field in the second half, however the momentum remained with the boys in blue when Adam D'Arcy streaked away to score with his first touch of the ball.
The forwards again wanted in on the action and crossed off a driving maul from a lineout through Damien Fitzpatrick, before rookie backrower Chris Alcock scored two more tries late in the quarter.
The Fijians didn't give up however, and captain Anthony Wise crossed after the best sustained piece of pressure from the Warriors early in the final quarter.
Josh Holmes and D'Arcy scored the Tahs' final two tries, before Manoa Tamava scored just before full-time to leave the final score at 83-15.
The Waratahs return to Sydney on Sunday with a short turnaround before their final Super 14 trial against the Brumbies this Thursday at Viking Park in Canberra.
The scorers:
For the Waratahs:
Tries: Betham 2,Alcock 2, Adam D'Arcy 2, Carter, Baxter, Polota-Nau, Nadolo, Beale, Fitzpatrick, Holmes
Cons: Barnes 4, Halangahu 4 ,McKibbin
For the Fiji Warriors:
Tries: Wise, Tamava
Con:Yavala
Pen: Yavala