Tahs snap losing streak
Clark provides kick-start as Waratahs bring down Highlanders
RUGBY UNION: Cam Clark has started three games for the Waratahs this season and made a big play in each.
Against the Blues, he ran down Rieko Ioane over 90 metres to stop a try. Against the Crusaders, he scored one by finishing with pace.
Both of those games ended in tight losses, but on Saturday night Clark discovered what it would take to get the Tahs home over a Kiwi team: cop a kick in the face, studs first. Kung-football.
“I don’t have a martial arts background, so no, it was a first,” Clark said.
“It was alright. You get used to getting hit in the head playing footy, so it was no different.”
In what ended up as a hoodoo-snapping victory for the Waratahs against the Highlanders, Clark was in the middle of the turning point of the game in the 18th minute.
Chasing a high ball, the NSW winger arrived as Tevita Nabura caught it but his Kiwi rival then had a moment of madness; kicking his foot out and connecting with Clark’s face.
In a moment of family calm, Cameron stayed on his feet and made a tackle and TV commentator father Greg called the moment as Nabura was justifiably sent off.
“I guess it’s a tough one,” Clark said. “You grow up as a back-three player contesting high balls, and he has obviously been taught to protect himself and use hard parts of your body. I guess it was unlucky he kicked his foot out at the wrong time.
“There’s nothing on my end. It happened and I had to get on with the job. I obviously felt contact there but I wasn’t too bothered about it to be honest.”
The depleted Highlanders, who even went down to 13 men soon after, struggled for the rest of the game against a Waratahs team that, after an adjustment period, used pace and intelligence to take advantage of their extra man.
The Tahs ran out 41-12 winners, registering the first win by an Australian Super Rugby side over a Kiwi rival in 41 attempts.
“Obviously it helps having 14 men. Especially, I guess, you look at a couple of the set-piece tries we scored, a winger down, it definitely helps. But I thought we did quite well to execute the tries we did,” Clark said.
Playing smart was pleasing for coach Daryl Gibson, who admitted wryly they’d done practice on going down a man but not much on going a man up against a Kiwi rival, perhaps based on previous experience.
For Clark, the game was yet another display of ultra-reliable form. After only cracking the team a month ago, the former Aussie sevens speedster has impressed coaches with effort plays and a willingness to put his body on the line.
The kung-fu kick wasn’t the first time he’d suffered for NSW.
Last year he got snapped in half against Queensland as a decoy runner for a well-worked set-piece try.
“You just want to be able to contribute to the team performance,” Clark said.
“You just have to keep putting your hand up.”
SUPER RUGBY SCORES: Waratahs d Highlanders 41-12; Hurricanes d Reds 38-34; Sunwolves d Stormers 26-23; Crusaders d Blues 32-24; Sharks d Chiefs 28-24