The Safeguard Global ACT Brumbies started preparations for their 2025 Super Rugby Pacific campaign with an entertaining 36-36 draw in a Trial match against the Waratahs in Bowral.
The Brumbies ran in six tries via Luke Reimer, Liam Bowron, Ollie Sapsford, Declan Meredith, Austin Anderson and Ryan Lonergan, with two conversions from the boot of Meredith and one from Lonergan.
Head coach Stephen Larkham highlighted the sense of the occasion in Bowral and was delighted with his side's performance in their first runout of the year.
"It was an unbelievable atmosphere out there with about 4,000 people turning up. There was really good support for both teams and it was a fantastic spectacle, 36 points each. Conditions were perfect and it was a great game of rugby that everyone can be very proud of.
"The program has been a really good one leading into this game. We learnt a lot from last year and put it into this pre-season block. Our set-piece was miles ahead of where it was last year. Defensively, we were also much better than last year at this time. And then our attack has definitely gone to a new level. There's a lot to be happy about.
"We'll still look at our defence. You've still got to look at that and say, why did we leak 36 points? And there'll be some individual errors there that we can assist with and things that we can fix.
"We had some young guys who'd come out of the academy get on the field there for at least 20 minutes and they really put their hand up. Jack Condon, Judah Saumaisue and Eli Langi, just to name those guys. I thought they were outstanding when they were on the field.
"They were involved in all the set-pieces and I thought their detail and their execution was outstanding."
The match began with both teams feeling each other out, understandably from a Brumbies perspective with it their first match since June last year and with an experimental lineup.
It was the side from the ACT who took the lead in the eight minute. Meredith made the initial, clean break from standoff with a lovely step, before patient buildup saw Reimer dot down. Meredith added the extras.
Darby Lancaster and Jack Grant responded for the Waratahs, the latter following good work from Langi Gleeson, before Bowron bustled his way over from short-range. With Meredith kicking the conversion, the scores were tied 14-14.
Subsequently Andrew Kellaway and Sapsford’s long-range effort, with an unsuccessful conversion, made the scores 21-19 to the Waratahs at half-time.
After Lancaster scored his second at the start of the second period, Meredith went over for the away side following a neat inside ball from Shane Wilcox.
Just before the hour mark Tristin Reilly’s acrobatic finish in the corner put the home side seven points ahead. However the Brumbies weren’t to be denied and started to pull away from the Sydney-based franchise.
A fantastic line from Anderson straight off the top of a lineout, fed by Condon, brought the away side to within two points. The Brumbies then took the lead with a magnificent team move, Debreczeni feeding Wilcox, who drew the fullback to play in Lonergan to run under the posts. Our scrumhalf nailed the conversion to make the score 36-31.
Replacement lock Felix Kalapu dived over for the Waratahs to tie the scores up. A back and forth last few minutes saw both teams threaten their opposition's tryline, but the final whistle blew to signal a thrilling draw in Bowral.
Safeguard Global ACT Brumbies 36 - 36 NSW Waratahs
Tries: Reimer, Bowron, Sapsford, Meredith, Anderson, R Lonergan
Conversions: Meredith (2), R Lonergan
Lineup:
- Blake Schoupp
- Liam Bowron
- Feao Fotuaika
- Lachlan Shaw
- Cadeyrn Neville
- Tuaina Taii-Tualima
- Luke Reimer
- Rory Scott
- Harrison Goddard
- Declan Meredith
- Ben O’Donnell
- David Feliuai
- Hudson Creighton
- Ollie Sapsford
- Andy Muirhead
Finishers:
Lington Ieli
Billy Pollard
Lachlan Lonergan
Timma Fainga’anuku
Rhys van Nek
Tom Hooper
Lachlan Hooper
Eli Langi
Jack Condon
Judah Saumaisue
Klayton Thorn
Ryan Lonergan
Jack Debreczeni
Corey Toole
Austin Anderson
Kadin Pritchard
Shane Wilcox
