Waratahs scrape past Reds
Both sides failed to hold onto the ball for long enough to launch a meaningful attack - thanks to slippery conditions - however, the match was not without its drama and handbags. The result sees the Waratahs claim their second victory of the campaign.
The Reds dominated the possession and territory in the opening minutes and the Waratahs had no answer to their powerful scrum, giving away a number of penalties inside their 22. All the pressure paid off in the 12th minute when another dominant Reds scrum on the Waratahs' five metre line was rewarded with a penalty try. Jake McIntyre added the extras to hand the Reds a 7-0 lead.
The Waratahs finally got their hands on the ball and with their first attack of the match, Jed Holloway broke off the back of a scrum on his 10 metre line. He sped all the way into the Reds' 22 before being brought down but the Waratahs recycled it quickly and flung it left. It found the hands of Israel Folau, who had an easy canter over the line.
Bernard Foley's conversion attempt came back off the right upright and the Waratahs trailed 5-7 after 20 minutes.
The match opened up from that point but errors were starting to creep into the Reds' game which allowed the Waratahs to gain some momentum. They could not take advantage of their dominance though as the Reds got their hands on the ball once again.
The Reds were camping inside the Waratahs' 22 but clever work by Michael Hooper at the breakdown saw him win back possession. The ball found the hands of Foley who broke through the Reds defence and was brought down inside the Reds' 22. The ball was recycled and handed to Folau, who stepped through a gap to grab his second of the match.
Foley added the conversion and the Waratahs led 12-7 at the half-time interval.
The Reds thought they had regained the lead in the 42nd minute when some poor defending by the Waratahs allowed Curtis Browning to steal the ball at a breakdown a metre from the Waratahs' line but he was held up over the line. From the resulting five metre scrum, the Reds were once again dominant.
But some foul play by hooker Andrew Ready, in which he drove his knee into the head of his opponent, saw him being sent to the sin bin. However, the Waratahs conceded a penalty a few seconds later and McIntyre took full advantage as he slotted the kick to reduce the deficit to 10-12 after 46 minutes.
The Reds had their tails up and the Waratahs could not hold onto the ball as the rain began to fall. The home side were awarded another penalty in the 49th minute and McIntyre made no mistake to hand the Reds a 13-12 lead.
The Waratahs finally managed to hold onto the ball for a few phases and began finding their rhythm once again. The error count began rising by the second and a mistake on their 10 metre line saw the Reds give up their lead. Foley slotted a 68th minute penalty to hand the Waratahs a 15-13 lead.
The visitors spend the majority of the final 10 minutes inside the Reds' 22 but the handling errors remained a hindrance. They were unable to add to the scoreline as they claimed the win to leave the Reds without a victory in the competition.
Man of the match: The conditions and scrappy nature of the match ,makes it hard to single out any individuals. The Reds' entire pack of forwards, including their replacements, were absolutely dominant at scrum time while Samu Kerevi gave the Waratahs plenty of headaches. Kurtley Beale and Israel Folau, despite bagging a brace, showed glimpses and Jack Dempsey had a stellar performance. Bernard Foley's tactical kicking game was on point and was pivotal in helping the Waratahs get out of danger and into the Reds' half of the field, so he gets the nod.
Scorers:
For the Reds:
Try: Penalty try
Con: McIntyre
Pens: McIntyre 2
For the Waratahs:
Tries: Folau 2
Con: Foley
Pen: Foley
Yellow card: Andrew Ready (Reds, foul play - knee to the head, 44)
Teams:
Reds: 15 Karmichael Hunt, 14 Junior Laloifi , 13 Samu Kerevi, 12 Anthony Fainga'a, 11 Eto Nabuli, 10 Jake McIntyre, 9 Nick Frisby, 8 Jake Schatz, 7 Liam Gill, 6 Hendrik Tui, 5 Rob Simmons (captain), 4 Cadeyrn Neville, 3 Greg Holmes, 2 Andrew Ready, 1 Sef Fa'agase.
Replacements: 16 Saia Fainga'a, 17 James Slipper, 18 Sam Talakai, 19 Ben Matwijow, 20 Curtis Browning, 21 Scott Gale, 22 Sam Greene, 23 Ayumu Goromaru.
Waratahs: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Reece Robinson, 13 Rob Horne, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Zac Guildford, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Nick Phipps, 8 Jed Holloway, 7 Michael Hooper (captain), 6 Jack Dempsey, 5 David Dennis, 4 Dean Mumm, 3 Angus Ta'avao, 2 Tolu Latu, 1 Paddy Ryan.
Replacements: 16 Hugh Roach, 17 Benn Robinson, 18 Tom Robertson, 19 Sam Lousi, 20 Wycliff Palu, 21 Matt Lucas, 22 David Horwitz , 23 Matt Carraro.
Referee: Ben O'Keeffe