Capital punishment for Southland
An 80-minute performance might’ve eluded Wellington, but not the maximum Mitre 10 Cup points.
The Lions took a decent first-half bite out of Southland, without quite being able to kill them off thereafter. All the same, the final score of 52-7 at Westpac Stadium last night was still fairly emphatic.
Just not as comprehensive as it might’ve been, given the what had occurred in the opening 40 minutes.
Forty-nil at halftime was a fair reflection of the action, and the gulf in talent between the two teams. Two or three of the hosts’ six firsthalf tries were great to watch but the trick was going to be maintaining that desire and accuracy.
From the fifth minute, when second five-eighth Thomas UmagaJensen scored from a Jackson Garden-Bachop grubber kick, Lions were lining up to get on the scoresheet.
Right wing Ben Lam had a brace by halftime, while tight forwards Asafo Aumua, James Blackwell and Tolu Fahamokioa all barged over from close range.
With halfback TJ Perenara calling the shorts, Wellington were game to attack from anywhere. Fullback Wes Goosen was prominent, as were locks Will Mangos and Blackwell, flankers Ardie Savea and Vaea Fifita and Umaga-Jensen in midfield.
Individualism, and halftime, can get in the way of teams in this situation and it was going to be fascinating to see what Wellington did from there.
The early signs were promising, but didn’t yield any points. Passes that had stuck didn’t and Southland got themselves an even share of possession. With Perenara and Savea set for a spell, ahead of next weekend’s All Blacks duties in Nelson, you could feel some real impetus leaving the Lions.
It took until the 59th minute for them to add to their points tally, when Lam powered over in the right-hand corner. Lam had passed and kicked a bit during the match, but with his size and speed just keeping the ball in hand generally looks the best option.
Savea and Aumua, along with Aumua, eventually got their spell in
Forty-nil at halftime was a fair reflection of the action, and the gulf in talent between the two teams.
the 64th minute. All three had done well but it was Aumua’s performance that was arguably most heartening. The hooker has barely played this year, following wrist surgery, and is badly in need of game time and confidence.
The thing Southland were badly in need of was points. Bill Fukofuka eventually got them five, from a driving maul, which James Wilson turned into seven with a conversion from near the uprights.
Wellington never got negative or stopped trying, but their game increasingly lacked accuracy and they would be disappointed not to win the second half by more than 12-7. Coach Chris Gibbes sets exceptionally high standards and might feel they weren’t quite reached.