Vengeance sweet as
REDEMPTION might be stretching it, but the Blues have returned to the scene of one of their darkest moments and found a welcome ray of light for their 2018 Super Rugby campaign.
Let’s hold off with the party hats and streamers for now, for this season still has a way to go before it can be termed on track, but the Blues can at least celebrate a much-needed 24-10 bonus point victory in Tokyo over the Sunwolves that doubles their win tally for 2018.
It wasn’t always pretty but Tana Umaga’s under-pressure side delivered when it mattered in the second half to get a result that breathes some much needed life back into their campaign.
Their 2-5 record, and 12 competition points, still have them bottom of the Kiwi conference. But they are now five points closer to a top-eight spot than they were coming in to the weekend.
And, of course, they at last buried the ghosts of their 2017 debacle at the same Prince Chichibu Memorial Ground when they were humiliated 48-21 by the Sunwolves in their season finale.
‘‘We wanted to right some wrongs from last year,’’ said skipper James Parsons afterwards. ‘‘I’m proud of our group. There’s a lot of young men out there, a lot of young men new in their careers, and I’m just proud of their heart and effort throughout the week to give us the ability to perform the way we did today.’’
Parsons said a shaky first half had not deterred the side from what they were doing against the winless, and defensively challenged, Sunwolves.
‘‘We didn’t finish those opportunities in the first half, but we knew we right there on the cusp and if we could come out and execute we’d come away with it. The breakdown was key in the first half. We weren’t aggressive enough to give us fast ball and it didn’t allow us to finish those opportunities.’’
The Blues were much better over the run home. Wing Jordan