Super Rugby Pacific: Western Force lose in golden point as Waratahs prevail 23-17
Western Force's Super Rugby Pacific season has ended in heartbreaking fashion, as Waratahs winger Darby Lancaster's incredible acrobatic try secured a 23-17 win golden point win.
In a feisty affair played out in wet conditions, the Force came from behind before letting a late lead slip which resulted in an encore of their extra-time period against the Hurricanes from earlier this season.
For the second time this season, the Force came away without a win from golden point after the two sides were unable to be split after 80 minutes.
And the Force's season finished in sour fashion after the siren in golden point when Lancaster cartwheeled over the try-line in the corner and his effort was approved by the Television Match Official.
A season which promised so much a month ago, when the Force's previous golden point draw against the Hurricanes left them in fifth spot, ended with five consecutive losses.
And a wooden spoon which seemed unthinkable with the Force in a finals spot for the first half of the season is not off the cards if Fijian Drua and the Highlanders win next week.
The Force had led 17-14 at the break after two quick tires, while Carlo Tizzano made history with his 13th five-pointer of the season to become the out-right holder of the record for most tries by a forward in a Super Rugby campaign.
Hamish Stewart's late first-half try for the Force proved to be a flashpoint of sorts; not only did it give them their first lead of the game, it triggered a melee which set off a chain reaction of chagrin which persisted throughout the encounter.
But the Force could not make their chances count in the second half as they were held scoreless, and while both teams missed penalties in golden point, it was the Waratahs who ultimately prevailed to keep their own finals hopes alive.
The Force were close to beating themselves at numerous points in the first half, like when Ben Donaldson's pop pass in the fourth minute was picked off by Triston Reilly and taken to the house.
But the visitors soon found themselves on the back foot as penalties began to accumulate against them and Tizzano responded when he drove over from close range, taking Joey Walton with him.
Waratahs fly-half Tane Edmed was at the heart of the way side's best moments and he helped the 'Tahs to a 14-5 lead when his clever chip kick was collected by Darby Lancaster, who then scored after some nice work from Jake Gordon and Hugh Sinclair.
The Force narrowed the margin to four points in the 33rd minute when Harry Potter and Dylan Pietsch combined down the left edge to allow Bayley Kunzle to gallop free, and his inside pass was carried over by Mac Grealy.
And the hosts then took the lead when Stewart smashed through Gordon's tackle to find the line, which was followed by a prolonged skirmish between the two sides when Stewart took umbrage to the close attention of Fergus Lee-Warner.
The pre-break hostilities set the stage for the second half and the Waratahs were guilty of of losing their cool early.
Miles Amatosero was penalised for a crude clean-out on Jeremy Williams, Taniela Tupou was sin-binned for an attemped slide tackle Roy Keane would have been proud of and then Angus Bell gave away a penalty for throwing the ball at an opponent.
But even with Tupou yellow-carded, the Force were unable to turn their numerical advantage into points, keeping the Waratahs in the game — and momentum shifted in favour of the Waratahs.
As the rain thundered down late, the Force lost Tiaan Tauakipulu to a yellow card, which allowed Jack Bowen to level the scores with a penalty goal.
A Potter breakdown penalty gave the Force a penalty near the sidelines as time expired, but Kurtley Beale's ambitious goal-kick narrowly missed the mark, triggering golden point.
Alex Harford's attempted penalty goal missed the mark, but Bowen failed to convert his own attempt before Lancaster's acrobatic placement in the corner secured the win.
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The Gold Coast captain was cleared of concussion after his head hit the ground following the body contact from Stewart, but was later taken to hospital for scans on his chest region. Scott insisted Stewart showed the appropriate duty of care to Anderson and was adamant there would have to be a fundamental shift in rules for the five-time All-Australian to face sanction over the bump. "If it's a protective action where contact's unavoidable and you don't get them in the head, then you've done everything you can," Scott said after the match. "I sort of feel for Noah. Everyone loves him, he's a gun player and it was pretty heavy contact to the ribs, but it was to the body. "Stewy, I thought his duty of care to Noah was as good as it could have been, and he was good enough to hit him in the body." Gold Coast coach Damien Hardwick didn't feel there was anything untoward in the bump from Stewart, who was given a four-match ban in 2022 for a nasty hit on Richmond's Dion Prestia. "The game's combative, accidents happen on the footy field. It's one of those things," Hardwick said of Saturday's incident. "We'd love Noah to keep playing (but it's) within the rules, still allowed to bump. "It was a reasonable hit, a solid hit. He's a big boy, Tom Stewart. "But once again, we'll make it very clear, it was chest. It wasn't head or anything like that - no concussion. "From our point of view he'll just go there (hospital) and see what that comes back at." Hardwick was more concerned with his team failing what he had termed a "litmus test" before the match, and ceding their top-four spot to Geelong in the process. The Cats never trailed and pulled clear after halftime to improve their record to 9-4 with a fourth straight win, while Gold Coast slipped to 8-4 with a second successive defeat. It was also the Suns' ninth loss in as many visits to Geelong's Kardinia Park base - eight of those against the Cats - since their AFL inception in 2011. 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Stewart crunched Anderson in a heavy collision during the fourth quarter of the Cats' dour 9.7 (61) to 5.7 (37) victory at a rain-soaked GMHBA Stadium on Saturday. Play was held up while Anderson was assessed by medical staff, before he jogged slowly off the ground. He was eventually taken to the Suns' change-room. The Gold Coast captain was cleared of concussion after his head hit the ground following the body contact from Stewart, but was later taken to hospital for scans on his chest region. Scott insisted Stewart showed the appropriate duty of care to Anderson and was adamant there would have to be a fundamental shift in rules for the five-time All-Australian to face sanction over the bump. "If it's a protective action where contact's unavoidable and you don't get them in the head, then you've done everything you can," Scott said after the match. "I sort of feel for Noah. Everyone loves him, he's a gun player and it was pretty heavy contact to the ribs, but it was to the body. "Stewy, I thought his duty of care to Noah was as good as it could have been, and he was good enough to hit him in the body." Gold Coast coach Damien Hardwick didn't feel there was anything untoward in the bump from Stewart, who was given a four-match ban in 2022 for a nasty hit on Richmond's Dion Prestia. "The game's combative, accidents happen on the footy field. It's one of those things," Hardwick said of Saturday's incident. "We'd love Noah to keep playing (but it's) within the rules, still allowed to bump. "It was a reasonable hit, a solid hit. He's a big boy, Tom Stewart. "But once again, we'll make it very clear, it was chest. It wasn't head or anything like that - no concussion. "From our point of view he'll just go there (hospital) and see what that comes back at." Hardwick was more concerned with his team failing what he had termed a "litmus test" before the match, and ceding their top-four spot to Geelong in the process. The Cats never trailed and pulled clear after halftime to improve their record to 9-4 with a fourth straight win, while Gold Coast slipped to 8-4 with a second successive defeat. It was also the Suns' ninth loss in as many visits to Geelong's Kardinia Park base - eight of those against the Cats - since their AFL inception in 2011. Tyson Stengle (four goals) and Max Holmes (40 disposals, 10 clearances) starred for Geelong, while Tom Atkins (23, eight) and Mark O'Connor (21, seven) were also important. AFL great Gary Ablett Jr was among the 29,502 fans on hand to watch his two former clubs do battle, and witnessed a scrappy, stoppage-heavy encounter in wet conditions. Hardwick felt Geelong were better around the contest, conceding they were "too good, too clean and too strong" for the Suns. "We've got some work to do and I was really pissed off, to be perfectly honest," he said. "We knew the game that we needed to have, and we unfortunately failed the test." Geelong lost Shannon Neale to an ankle injury before halftime, and Gold Coast's Jed Walter could face scrutiny for late and high contact on O'Connor with a swinging arm.
