As it happened: Super Rugby - Chiefs vs Waratahs

As it happened:  Super Rugby - Chiefs vs Waratahs
Photo credit: Photosport

FULLTIME: CHIEFS 39 - 27 WARATAHS 

80mins: CHIEFS TRY - MCKENZIE: Chiefs driving from the lineout win just metres out but the Waratahs sack and turn it over. They try to counter from inside their own goal area but the knock on and we'll have one last scrum. McKenzie gets it on the outside of his marker and he races away for the bonus point try. Great finish.

78mins: Waratahs looking to hit back but they cough it up in the tackle around halfway, Lienert-Brown picks it up, puts the kick through for Wainui to chase but Foley wins the race to take it back and dot down. Chiefs scrum just five out.

76mins: Foley goes short at the restart and it's Folau again who goes up and hands catches it to put the Waratahs in great field position. They're building nicely but Retallick gets over the ball at the breakdown and wins the penalty. Just brilliant.

74mins: Lienert-Brown has McKenzie free down the right wing but decides against passing. Waratahs feeling the pressure and concede the penalty at the breakdown. McKenzie will have a shot at goal and he extends the lead.

72mins: Chiefs keeping it tight, taking it up through their forwards. Allardice finds Parete with a great ball and he busts one tackle before going down just five out. Chiefs look certain to score but a player goes off his feet at the breakdown and his penalised.

70mins: Foley's under pressure so he kicks it before McKenzie returns the favour. Foley has another crack but it's out on the full, just! Chiefs will have the lineout inside the Tahs 10m.

68mins: Waratahs look to drive from the lineout but Allardice and Rettalick combine to sack the maul and force the turnover. Great work from the lock pairing.

66mins: Foley kicks deep and Alaimalo puts the bomb up on the return and it takes an ugly bounce before going the way of the Waratahs. Allardice penalised at the breakdown.

64mins: There's space for Rona down the left wing, he finds Holloway on the inside and the Tahs are up over the 22m. Folau has a charge and now they're just seven or so metres out. Chiefs concede the penalty as Harris is pinged for not rolling away. Foley will have a shot and he nails it.

61mins: McKenzie sees space and puts the kick through, forcing Folau to kick off his wrong foot and the Chiefs take it quickly. Alaimalo's in space up the middle, he finds Weber but his pass on the inside is knocked on by Jacobson.

59mins: Foley tries the short restart but it pops up for Karpik and McKenzie bangs one high for Foley to counter. Beale kicks through but the Chiefs gather it in safely.

57mins: CHIEFS TRY - PULU: McKenzie tries the grubber but Folau comes up with it before Beale kicks down field. Weber puts boot to ball and there's nobody home! Pulu just has to pick it up and dive over and he does just that to score his second try.

55mins: McKenzie goes deep with the kick-off and Foley clears down field for Harris to counter. McKenzie kicks it right it to Folau who puts the bomb up but it goes into touch on the full.

53mins: WARATAHS TRY - BEALE: Beale's pass finds Folau along the ground, he comes back in field before popping it back to the second-five who spots a hole, puts the foot down and scores in the corner.

51mins: Waratahs going backwards so Phipps kicks before Alaimalo's clearance goes directly into touch for a Tah's lineout inside the 22m.

49mins: CHIEFS TRY - PULU: Lienert-Brown puts Alaimalo in space before Wainui gets it down the left wing. Chiefs shift it the other way on the right and Pulu fends one before going over for the try. He's had a cracker of a game so far. 

47mins: Foley puts up the cross kick and oh my, Folau gets up to take it with just his hands. Waratahs hot on attack now and have numbers outside but the final pass is adjudged forward. Chiefs were offside however, so Foley will line up a shot at goal and he nails it from in front.

45mins: Miller runs it pace and finds Naiyaravoro on the outside, he looks dangerous but Pulu and Alaimalo do well to contain the big winger and rip the ball into touch.

43mins: Waratahs win the free-kick at the scrum after an early shove from the Chiefs. Foley puts up the bomb and Alaimalo does well to gather it in.

41mins: Naiyaravoro almost interceps McKenzie's floated pass but the Chiefs get it and clear down field for the lineout.

HALFTIME: CHIEFS 19 - 14 WARATAHS: Very intersting half of footy. The Waratahs started the game like a house on fire, with a couple of beautifully worked tries from the set piece. The Chiefs have been in control from then on however. Let's hope the second half is action-packed as well.

40mins: Chiefs put the heat on again at the scrum but McKenzie decides to boot it into touch to take us into halftime. 

40mins: Weber's pass is ALMOST intercepted by Wells but he knocks it on. Very, very lucky there for the Chiefs halfback. He would have been away.

38mins: Allardice kicks the ball away at the breakdown and he's penalised. Tahs to have the lineout just five out. Wells wins it and they try the drive. The ball eventually comes free and Folau finds Naiyaravoro who has the whole Chiefs team on him to keep him out before winning it back and clearing.

36mins: Folau gives chase to Foley's bomb but Alaimalo takes it well. McKenzie clears down field and Beale returns it for a lineout on the Chiefs 10m.

34mins: CHIEFS TRY - MCKENZIE: Lienert-Browns hits the line at pace, offloads to Pulu and he finds McKenzie, who steps on and rolls over in the tackle of Folau to score the try. Great bit of play.

32mins: Folau looks to counter and he steps out of the tackle of Messam to take the Tahs up near the 22m. They're building nicely but Retallick does what Brodie does and forces the penalty at the breakdown.

30mins: CHIEFS TRY - HARRIS: Chiefs win the lineout and begin to drive. They're steadily making ground before they break away. Beale strips Lienert-Brown of the ball and they look to counter. They shift left but the ball's come free! Messam picks it up, offloads to Harris and the hooker's in for the try! Was Karpik who caused the ball to come free.

28mins: Waratahs try the drive, Phipps looks to kick but his players are illegally blocking the way and it's a penalty. Chiefs will have the lineout on the 22m.

27mins: Pulu skins Naiyaravoro on the outside before finding his support player on the inside. Chiefs working towards the 22m. Messam almost puts Ngatai in space but he's tackled. Alaimalo knocks on and a Chiefs players picks it up from an offside position for the penalty.

25mins: McKenzie steps one and finds Alaimalo in space, he offloads to Wainui but his pass is knocked on. Promising bit of play there by the Chiefs.

23mins: Folau tries the offload but it goes to ground before they reset. They try the kick and Wainui does brilliantly to catch it on the run. 

21mins: They try the set piece move but Naiyaravoro is well looked after. Chiefs eventually turn it over and Wainui finds touch with the clearance.

20mins: Foley goes deep witht he kick-off and Weber's return only makes it up near the 10m for the Waratahs lineout. Another set piece move?

18mins: CHIEFS TRY - RETTALICK: Jacobson wins the lineout and Karpik tries the run. Chiefs up inside the Tahs' 22m. Ngatai makes another strong run and they have the advantage just a metre out. McKenzie puts Retallick in a hole and the big lock dives under the sticks for the try.

16mins: Weber tries a sneaky dart but Miller and Hooper get to him to hold him up and force the turnover.

15mins: Phipps tries the box kick but it's poor and travels over the sideline on the full for a Chiefs lineout on the 22m. Great chance to hit right back.

13mins: WARATAHS TRY - RONA: Waratahs win the lineout, Foley finds Beale and Rona runs a beautiful line to get the ball in space, he beats a couple of tacklers and races away 20 odd metres to score the try. Another brilliant set piece move.

11mins: Chiefs scrum destroys the Waratahs pack and walk over it to win it back! Ngatai steps a couple and he's up inside the 22m. Retallick tries to offload to Weber but he knocks on.

9mins: Chiefs building very nicely are up inside the Waratahs 22m. Ngatai sees space and tries the grubber kick but Folau gets back to dot down for the drop out.

7mins: Staniforth takes in the kick-off and Phipps' box kick is partially charged and Alaimalo looks to counter. Chiefs up near the 22m.

5mins: WARATAHS TRY - CLARK: Waratahs get it back from the scrum inside the 22m, Foley finds Naiyaravoro on the wrap around and he gives it to a flying Clark on the right wing who races in to score the try. Looked so easy that. 

3mins: Pulu concedes the penalty and Foley puts the kick into touch for the lineout on halfway. Foley puts up the bomb, it's a good nudge and the ball rolls free for Beale to claim but his pass goes forward. 

1mins: Foley gets us underway and it's Weber who takes it in before Pulu has a charge. McKenzie clears up near the 10m.

7:28pm: Players to make their way out shortly. There's a different feel to this game and the one following, the Highlanders away to the Reds. Both Australian sides are within a shout.

7:22pm: All eyes will be on Israel Folau. Off the field stuff aside, he's been in great form. No doubt a player the Chiefs will have the shutdown if they're to win.

7:18pm: Welcome! Thanks for joining us tonight. The Chiefs welcome back a host of players, while the Waratahs are coming off a historic win over the Highlanders.

Kia ora and welcome to Waikato Stadium as the Chiefs take on the Waratahs in week 15 of Super Rugby.  

We bring you live streaming written commentary, (BE SURE TO REFRESH YOUR BROWSER), and all the action. Video will be available as soon as the final whistle goes.

Commentary will start at 7:20pm (NZT)

Lineups

Chiefs

15 Solomon Alaimalo, 14 Toni Pulu, 13 Anton Lienert-Brown, 12 Charlie Ngatai (c), 11 Sean Wainui, 10 Damian McKenzie, 9 Brad Weber, 8 Liam Messam, 7 Mitch Karpik, 6 Luke Jacobson, 5 Michael Allardice, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Angus Ta’avao, 2 Nathan Harris, 1 Karl Tu’inukuafe.

Replacements: 16 Samisoni Taukei’aho, 17 Sam Prattley, 18 Jeff Thwaites, 19 Jesse Parete, 20 Matt Matich, 21 Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi, 22 Marty McKenzie, 23 Shaun Stevenson.

Waratahs

15 Israel Folau, 14 Cam Clark, 13 Curtis Rona, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Taqele Naiyaravoro, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Nick Phipps, 8 Michael Wells, 7 Michael Hooper (c), 6 Will Miller, 5 Rob Simmons, 4 Tom Staniforth, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Damien Fitzpatrick, 1 Tom Robertson.

Replacements: 16 Tolu Latu, 17 Harry Johnson-Holmes, 18 Paddy Ryan, 19 Jed Holloway, 20 Brad Wilkin, 21 Jake Gordon, 22 Lalakai Foketi, 23 Bryce Hegarty.

Match officials
Referee: Glen Jackson
Assistant Referees: Angus Mabey, Cam Stone
TMO: Aaron Paterson

Previous meetings
Sat, 03 Jun 2017 Chiefs v Waratahs 46-31 Waikato
Fri, 27 May 2016 Chiefs v Waratahs 25-45 Sydney
Sat, 31 May 2014 Chiefs v Waratahs 17-33 New Plymouth
Fri, 19 Apr 2013 Chiefs v Waratahs 20-25 Sydney
Sat, 31 Mar 2012 Chiefs v Waratahs 30-13 Hamilton

Head-to-head
Chiefs $1.28 Waratahs $3.60

Pre-match banter: Chiefs welcome back All Blacks for Waratahs clash

The Chiefs have been bolstered by the return of their All Blacks for their clash against the Waratahs in Hamilton on Saturday (NZT).

Coach Colin Cooper has made several changes from the side that went down to Sharks last week with Brodie Retallick, Nathan Harris, Damian McKenzie and Anton Lienert-Brown all named to start.

Veteran Liam Messam has shifted to number eight, while exciting flanker Mitch Karpik gets a run in the number seven jersey.

Solomon Alaimalo returns to the fullback position and captain Charlie Ngatai slots in at second-five, partnering Lienert-Brown in a rejuvenated midfield.

Toni Pulu also comes into the run on side as the only other change in the backline.

Cooper said the the team are doing a lot of work and planning on how to nullify the Waratahs attack.

"The team have travelled back from South Africa well, and brought five points back, which we are pretty happy about. Now it’s about getting ready for a tough Waratahs match.

"They have really shown against New Zealand opposition what their attack can do, so we are doing a lot of work defensively to stop the Waratahs and their attack play.

“Recovery is key. We felt there were some inaccuracies in our attack flow in our previous game and we will look to execute better this weekend.”

Newest All Blacks recruits Karl Tu’inukuafe and Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi both feature in the match-day squad, with Karl starting at loosehead and Te Toiroa on the bench. Cooper commented on their determination to take all opportunities offered this season.

“Karl and Te Toiroa are two guys that have put their hands up and have got opportunities through injuries and their form, and they’re now All Blacks. They’ve done really well.” 

Newshub.