Blues trample Queensland Reds 53-26 to tighten grip on Super Rugby Pacific top spot & More Trending News

At Eden Park, Auckland: Blues 53 (Bryce Heem 2 tries 14min, 31min, Caleb Clarke 2 tries 17min, 43min, Beauden Barrett strive 45min, Stephen Perofeta strive 57min, Soane Vikena 2 tries 68min, 77min; Perofeta pen, 5 con), Queensland Reds 26 (Suliasi Vunivalu strive 22min, Ryan Smith strive 39min, Jock Campbell 2 tries 63min, 71min; James O’Connor 3 con). HT: 22-14.

Winning has change into not only a behavior, however of late a celebration for the all of a sudden irrepressible Blues on this Super Rugby Pacific season.

Leon MacDonald’s males, on Saturday evening of their common season house finale at Eden Park, misplaced All Blacks star Rieko Ioane early to a hamstring damage, however not something in the best way of kind, momentum and confidence as they comfortably dispatched Brad Thorn’s Queensland Reds to financial institution yet one more bonus-point victory.

The eight tries to 4 victory was the Blues’ eleventh on the bounce this season (one shy of equalling the franchise document), improves them to a competition-best 11-1, and 50 factors. Ominously, they now have a seven-point buffer on their closest pursuers (the Brumbies and Crusaders), with the minor premiership all however sewn up with a fortnight remaining within the common season.

In case you haven’t been counting, that’s additionally 19 tries, and 124 factors, within the final two matches towards Australian opposition, after final spherical’s 71-28 dismantling of the Rebels. These guys are in some form of attacking kind – even when their defence would possibly want just a bit little bit of consideration.

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It was one other excellent attacking show by the Blues, with the pack once more laying a wonderful basis, and the backs having a area day with their pace and execution. Lock James Tucker continued his standout kind with one other huge evening (43m on the carry), Hoskins Sotutu unleashed his expertise and left 4 defenders in his wake and alternative hooker Soane Vikena loved the night with two late tries off the lineout drive route.

Beauden Barrett was glorious within the pivot, created and completed, and was one in all three Blues backs to beat 5 defenders on the evening. Roger Tuivasa-Sheck continued his constructive formline with a team-high 72m (together with 5 defenders overwhelmed, and one exhilarating clear break) and Bryce Heem’s two-try effort off the bench was notable. Caleb Clarke, too, maintained his surging kind with a brace of tries and several other blockbusting runs.

The Reds toiled onerous, and confirmed some good touches themselves to internet 4 tries. Wing Suliasi Vunivalu, halfback Tate McDermott and lock Ryan Smith have been their standouts. But they missed 32 tackles, and that’s simply too excessive a quantity to have any likelihood.

The Blues had opened at some extent a minute by the primary 17 minutes. A stupendous run on the cutback line from alternative midfielder Heem and an 82-metre counter-attack completed by Clarke from a ruck had put the house aspect out to 17-0 earlier than the large crowd of 19,690 had absolutely settled of their seats.

But the Reds – down a couple of key troops, however not in spirit – weren’t going to roll over and play roadkill, as their mates from the Rebels had eight days earlier, and so they scored two of the remaining three tries of the half to scrape again inside eight (22-14) on the break.

Big wing Vunivalu, a one-time Auckland schoolboy star with St Kent’s, was an enormous determine within the Reds’ response over the second quarter, notching a wonderful strive himself on the within line off his halfback, after which organising the rating on the stroke of halftime for lock Ryan Smith when he skinned Clarke on the cost.

In between these two Reds’ seven-pointers Heem, who got here on for Ioane after simply 10 minutes, accomplished a superb stint along with his second strive when some beautiful dealing with from the Blues backs punished the guests for an error on the carry in their very own half.

The Blues put the match on ice early within the second spell with two fast tries (to Clarke and Barrett), and after that it was solely a matter of guaranteeing the bonus level because the tries saved coming for either side. Replacement hooker Soane Vikena’s late brace and a pleasant set-piece backline transfer completed by Stephen Perofeta ensured that.

Big second

Look no additional than the primary 5 minutes of the second spell. The Blues opened with a tough switcheroo on the kickoff, received the ball, then a penalty and ran in Clarke’s second strive, intently adopted by a scintillating five-pointer for Barrett to stretch out to 32-14.

Match ranking: 8/10

A high-quality, skilful encounter during which each groups contributed to a reasonably respectable spectacle. OK, a number of the defending wasn’t the perfect. But it was onerous not to respect the attacking qualities of either side, and particularly the Blues who would possibly simply have discovered a wealthy vein of kind on the proper time.

The huge image

The Blues have now received 11 on the bounce and at 11-1, with 49/50 competitors factors, would have to fall off the cliff over the ultimate fortnight (Brumbies and Waratahs away) not to lock up the minor championship, and the all-important house benefit for the finals. The Reds, now 7-5, and caught on 31 factors, are discovering the realities of the trans-Tasman part difficult.

MVP

Clarke and Heem have been spectacular, and bagged a brace of tries apiece, however look no additional than Tuivasa-Sheck as a person hitting kind on the proper time.

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