Melbourne Rebels 22-16 Western Force

The Melbourne Rebels put the brakes on the Western Force’s winning

run with a hard-earned 22-16 victory.

The Rebels made amends for their early-season humiliation at the

hands of the Force and stopped the Perth franchise’s surge at five

successive wins.

It was Melbourne’s third win and was much needed after back-to-back losses in New Zealand and with the bye next round.

They did it the hard way, dominating the first half everywhere

except on the scoreboard with the teams locked at 6-6 at halftime.

The Rebels had 62 per cent of possession, a massive 502 run

metres compared to the Force’s 207 and made only 39 tackles compared to

96 for the visitors.

They didn’t get across the tryline until the 61st minute, relying on the boot of fullback Jason Woodward kicking penalties.

That try came after skipper Scott Higginbotham took the ball from the back of their scrum and charged over.

The Melbourne scrum earned bragging rights over their rivals

while lock Luke Jones continued to push his claims for a Wallaby

call-up, making a game-high 16 runs.

The Force, missing halfback Alby Mathewson (ankle), lock Sam

Wykes (rib) and winger Luke Morahan (hamstring), also struggled to bag a

five-pointer with five-eighth Sias Ebersohn keeping them in the game.

They hammered hard early in the second half, getting within

centimetres of the tryline but the home side’s defence held up and they

ended up taking three points for a ruck penalty.

The Force looked out of steam on the back of their winning run, which included the scalp of the NSW Waratahs last round.

Higginbotham’s converted try extended their lead to 19-6 and the

early workload started to take its toll on both sides with the error

toll mounting.

Woodward brought his personal toll to 17 points – five penalties

and a conversion – before Force winger Nick Cummins crossed after the

siren to ensure an all-important bonus point.

Higginbotham said the win was overdue after a run of close losses, including to the champion Chiefs last round.

He praised the scrum for laying the platform; all the more

impressive after losing starting prop Laurie Weeks 16 minutes in with

concussion.

“The scrum was fantastic and we really built on that,” Higginbotham said.

“The boys had a tough time in New Zealand so to come back here and really put it on, it was good for them.

“It was time for us to get a win.”

Article source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-league/25351051

Melbourne Rebels 22-16 Western Force