Stormers beat Waratahs for first tour victory

The Stormers ended a three match losing streak and earned their first victory on tour by beating the Waratahs 18-32 in Sydney.

The Stormers outscored the Waratahs by four tries to two as they won in Sydney for the first time since 2007.

The result moved the Stormers provisionally to the top of the South African Conference and into the top three.

The Stormers had not scored a try in Sydney since March 2007 but finished with a bonus point for four tries for the just the second time in 7 attempts.

The Stormers went into the match having lost their previous nine matches outside South Africa but grew in confidence against a ragged Waratahs team.

Centre Damian de Allende scored a double with other tries to winger Kobus van Wyk and fullback Cheslin Kolbe with the Stormers’ three second-half tries all long-range efforts.

Fly-half Demetri Catrakilis kicked two penalties and a conversion, while his half-time replacement Kurt Coleman landed two conversions.

Apart from their fleet-footed backs, it was the Stormers’ magnificent unyielding defence which kept the defending Super Rugby champions try-less in the second half on their home ground.

The Waratahs scored in the 13th minute through imposing Fijian winger Taqele Naiyaravoro, who bumped off three tackles in a burst to the right-hand corner, but Catrakilis kept the South Africans ahead with penalty goals before de Allende scored the first of his two tries.

Kurtley Beale lost the ball inside his own half and the Stormers quickly recycled possession to send the centre racing over wide out after 22 minutes.

But the Waratahs hit the front right on half-time when scrum-half Nick Phipps’s floated pass put winger Rob Horne over in the left corner and Foley’s conversion gave the Sydneysiders the lead at the break.

Yet it was all the Stormers in the second half with winger van Wyk regathering Coleman’s chip kick to sprint 60m to the try-line followed by late efforts from de Allende and Kolbe to nab a four-try bonus point.

Skipper Juan de Jongh, who recovered from an ankle injury to take his place, said he was proud of his team’s performance.

“It’s never easy to come to Sydney and beat the defending champions and get a bonus point as well,” de Jongh said.

“It was a committed performance and our defence was rock-solid and that gave us the front-foot ball and we scored some lovely tries.”

It was sloppy display from the Waratahs, who gave up the ball too frequently against the hard-hitting Stormers.

“We knew they would have a lot of numbers in the line to defend quite well and we weren’t good enough to get the line breaks and the tries we needed,” skipper Dave Dennis said.

“We just didn’t adjust to what they threw at us.”

The Stormers continue their tour of Australia next week as they face the Western Force in Perth while the Waratahs travel to Sydney to Wellington to face the Hurricanes.

Final Score Waratahs 18 (15) Stormers 32 (13)

Scorers

Waratahs 
Tries – T. Naiyaravoro, R.Horne
Pen – B.Foley 2
Con – B.Foley
Drop –
Cards –

Stormers
Tries – K.van Wyk, D.de Allende 2, C.Kolbe
Pen – D.Catrakilis 2
Con – D.Catrakilis, K.Coleman 2
Drop –
Cards –

Match Officials
Referee: Mike Fraser
Assistant Ref 1:Angus Gardner
Assistant Ref 2:James Leckie
TMO :Peter Marshall

Teams

Waratahs

1.Benn Robinson, 2. Tolu Latu, 3. Sekope Kepu, 4. Will Skelton, 5. David Dennis (C), 6 .Jacques Potgieter, 7 .Michael Hooper (VC) , 8.Wycliff Palu,9. Nick Phipps, 10. Bernard Foley, 11. Rob Horne, 12. Kurtley Beale,13. Matt Carraro, 14.Taqele Naiyaravoro, 15. Israel Folau (VC)

Replacements:16 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 17 Jeremy Tilse, 18 Paddy Ryan, 19 Mitchell Chapman, 20 Pat McCutcheon, 21 Stephen Hoiles, 22 Brendan McKibbin, 23 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 24 Peter Betham, 25 Jono Lance

Stormers

15. Cheslin Kolbe , 14. Kobus van Wyk , 13. Juan de Jongh (captain) , 12. Damian de Allende , 11. Dillyn Leyds , 10. Demetri Catrakilis , 9. Nic Groom , 8. Nizaam Carr , 7. Michael Rhodes , 6. Schalk Burger (vice-captain) , 5. Manuel Carizza , 4. Eben Etzebeth , 3. Frans Malherbe , 2. Scarra Ntubeni , 1. Steven Kitshoff

Replacements: 16. Bongi Mbonambi , 17. Oli Kebble , 18. Vincent Koch , 19. Jean Kleyn , 20. Siya Kolisi , 21. Louis Schreuder , 22. Kurt Coleman , 23. Huw Jones