Why Brumbies skipper Ryan Lonergan is crucial to his side’s Super Rugby Pacific championship hopes

If rugby fans were asked to name the ACT Brumbies’ best — or most talented — player, it is likely Rob Valetini, Nick Frost and Tom Wright would top the suggestions.

But pose the question of who is their most important, and skipper Ryan Lonergan would be deserving of the honour.

In the context of this argument, “important” means the player the Brumbies look to for leadership and cannot do without when a match is on the line.

Lonergan, who made his Test debut last year, proved his worth in this regard by helping guide the third-placed Brumbies to a come-from-behind 33-24 win over the Chiefs at Canberra Stadium on Friday night.

His quick thinking set up the Brumbies’ first try of the match, but the scrum half’s influence was more telling when the home side trailed 24-7 midway through the second term.

From a Brumbies’ scrum feed inside the Chiefs’ 22, Lonergan chose to attack down the short side, which was the low-percentage play.

He darted left from the scrum base and linked up with fly half Declan Meredith, who — while being driven towards touch — dribbled the ball back along the ground to his teammate to scoot over for a try in the corner.

It was just reward for Lonergan’s clever decision-making, which came to the fore again when he directed the Brumbies’ attack in the build-up to their next two tries, scored by Charlie Cale and Meredith.

The 19 unanswered points established a 26-24 lead, before Corey Toole’s length-of-the-field try — and Lonergan’s fourth conversion of the evening — iced the victory.

“He’s (Lonergan) offering so much to the (playing) group around the leadership, in what he says and how he says it,” Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham told reporters after the match.

With Len Ikitau and Noah Lolesio missing from the Brumbies’ roster this year — and Allan Alaalatoa (back) and Wright (knee) sidelined with injury — Lonergan’s experience will be crucial to the Brumbies’ hopes of reaching another finals series.

Brumbies back on track

The Brumbies’ win — in veteran prop James Slipper’s record-breaking appearance — was a much-needed morale boost, following consecutive losses to the Queensland Reds and Fijian Drua.

The performance against the Chiefs couldn’t be described as an 80-minute effort, but they impressively showed the ability to arrest lapses in their game when trailing on the scoreboard.

The fact that three of the Brumbies’ victories this season have come against fellow semifinalists from last year — the Crusaders (champions), Chiefs (runners-up) and Blues — should also add to their confidence. 

A 4-2 (win-loss) record through six rounds makes for better reading than a 3-3 return, setting up what should be a less stressful ‘Tah week’ ahead of NSW’s visit to the national capital on Friday night.

Waratahs waste chances

The Waratahs would have dearly loved to be facing the Brumbies off the back of a win, but they are largely to blame for their 35-20 loss to the Blues in Sydney on Saturday night.

Despite leading 17-8 at half-time, the Waratahs wasted countless scoring opportunities in the opening 40 minutes, with only two tries to show for their 12 entries inside the Blues’ 22.

They enjoyed a staggering 75 per cent of territory in the first half but coughed up possession four times when a try seemingly beckoned.

The Waratahs were also held up twice over the goal line, although the Blues’ defence deserved credit on these occasions.

The home side showed what they could do when they held onto the ball, with Tom Lambert’s try on the stroke of half-time coming after a sustained attack from multi-phase play.

A Sid Harvey penalty goal soon after the break was the only score the Waratahs could manage in the second half, with the Blues piling on 27 unanswered points.

Three consecutive defeats have left the Waratahs seventh on the standings, erasing the optimism that followed the victories in their opening two matches.

Harvey’s star on the rise

A silver lining from the Waratahs’ run of losses has been the emergence of Harvey, who has shown enormous potential since making his debut in round four.

Playing fullback against the Blues, Harvey gave a glimpse of what an attacking threat he could be, and his combination with Wallabies winger Max Jorgensen was encouraging.

The rangy 20-year-old is somewhat of an outlier in Australian rugby, given he graduated from a public school in country NSW.

His rise emphasises the importance of investing in junior development outside of the traditional private school pathways and in regional and rural areas.

Reds create history

On paper, it appeared the Reds faced a daunting task if they were to win against the Drua in Lautoka on Saturday.

For starters, they were missing eight Wallabies — including Fraser McReight and Tate McDermott — due to their resting policy and injury.

They had never previously beaten the Drua in Fiji and would be playing in front of arguably the most passionate supporters in the competition, amid stifling humidity.

But win they did, with Les Kiss’s troops keeping the Drua try-less in a history-making 21-6 victory.

Kiss used his reserves wisely after reaching half-time with a 7-6 lead.

Converted tries to Harry McLaughlin-Phillips and Richie Asiata in the second half clinched a bonus-point triumph, although discipline threatened to be their Achilles heel throughout the match.

The fourth-placed Reds conceded six of their nine penalties inside their territory, while Jock Campbell received a yellow card in the 43rd minute.

“We weren’t perfect, but no game of rugby is perfect, and we found the right solutions at the right time today, so we were happy with that,” Kiss said after the match.

Fiji-born winger Filipo Daugunu starred for the Reds on both sides of the ball, while youngsters Treyvon Pritchard and Vaiuta Latu were promising off the bench.

The Reds have won four matches on the trot but will still need to find improvement if they’re to topple the top-ranked Hurricanes in Wellington next Saturday.