Blues defy heat of Pau’s pack to claim final place
IT WASN’T the free flowing classic many predicted but Cardiff's dominance of the breakdown and ability to absorb huge pressure at scrum time saw them prevail in this physical encounter and earn a spot in the final against Gloucester.
Man-of-the-match Ellis Jenkins – one of at least six Test class Welsh open side flankers in the game today – frustrated Pau all afternoon with his turnovers, ably supported by backrow colleague Josh Navidi, Nick Williams and Olly Robinson when he appeared as a second half replacement.
Robinson, son of former England flanker Andy, came up with three priceless turnovers in an influential 12 minute cameo, showing the instincts of a natural jackal. Perhaps Eddie Jones and his scouts should examine his credentials more closely
It was impressive gritty stuff from Cardiff which speaks of a tightknit squad as we enter the business end of the season and that final against Glos in Bilbao should be a cracking Anglo/Welsh encounter and prove much more than an hors d’oeuvre to the main event.
Yesterday at a sweltering Arms Park they made a fast start with a well-taken try by Gareth Anscombe after a strong break by Seb Davies who, having made good yardage, also showed the composure to hit the breaks a little and time the final pass perfectly.
Jarrod Evans converted and for a while it was all Cardiff, but gradually Pau’s juggernaut pack started to play the game at their pace and dominate the scrummage. Luckily for the Blues the visitors didn’t use that scrummaging superiority to best advantage and, with their line-out misfiring, Pau struggled convert pressure into points. Their one success came when former France lock Julien Pierre did well to charge down an Anscombe clearance kick and veteran All Black Conrad Smith kept his cool win the touchdown under the posts.
Although free-running rugby was in short supply the huge collisions made for spectacular fare and as the game settled down it became a much more tactical duel. Jones and Tom Taylor swapped short range penalties and, as half-time approached, Jones struck again to give Cardiff a three point leading going down the tunnel.
After the break Pau, with their imposing Algerian prop Malik Hamadache emptying the tanks before he departed, seemed on the verge off taking control but time and again Cardiff came up with a turnover to thwart their best efforts.
That huge defensive shift was well rewarded and as they entered the final quarter Cardiff again began to get on the front foot, a process aided by the replacing of Hamadache who had been wreaking havoc in the scrums.
It was still tense and almost too close to call when Evans, having perhaps nicked a yard or two from where the penalty was originally awarded, slotted over a 44 yard effort with feet to spare to stretch the Cardiff lad to six points with six minutes left.
Pau tried to raise a final gallop but, on an exhausting afternoon, had little left in the tank.