Super Rugby - Blues vs Lions on 14 March 2020



March 14, 2020 - The match was played in Auckland on Saturday 14 March 2020, and kicked off at 5:25 SA Time.

Rieko Ioane opened the scoring for the home side when he powered over the line for the first try, this after the Blues enjoyed quick ball from the breakdowns in quick succession.

The Lions then pinned the Blues down in their own 22, and after a few mauls from line-outs, the ball went to the backs and Dan Kriel scored from close range. Jantjies converted to put the Lions up 7-5.

Otere Black put the home side back in front with a penalty, and then Stephen Perofeta scored in the corner when he had just forward defenders to beat.

Janjies added a penalty for the Lions, but then the Blues were awarded a penalty try when Ruan Vermaak was judged to have knocked down the ball deliberately. This made the score 22-10 at the break.

With the Lions down a man, the Blues took full advantage and added another two tries by Rieko Ioane and Gerard Cowley-Tuioti after the break, making the score 36-10.

Things looked better for the Lions when they were back to 15 men, but the Blues had the last say when Hoskins Sotutu scored the last try of the match to give the home side a 43-10 win.

Officials

Referee: Marius van der Westhuizen
AR1: Jaco Peyper
AR2: Ben O'Keeffe
TMO: Glenn Newman

Teams

Blues: 15 Stephen Perofeta, 14 Matt Duffie, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 TJ Faiane (captain), 11 Mark Telea, 10 Otere Black, 9 Sam Nock, 8 Hoskins Sotutu, 7 Blake Gibson, 6 Dalton Papalii, 5 Jacob Pierce, 4 Gerard Cowley-Tuioti, 3 Sione Mafileo, 2 James Parsons, 1 Karl Tu’inukuafe.
Replacements: 16 Luteru Tolai, 17 Joe Walsh, 18 Marcel Renata, 19 Aaron Carroll/Sam Caird, 20 Akira Ioane, 21 Jonathan Ruru, 22 Harry Plummer, 23 Emoni Narawa.

Lions: 15. Tyrone Green, 14. Jamba Ulengo, 13. Manuel Rass, 12. Dan Kriel, 11. Courtnall Skosan, 10. Elton Jantjies (Capt.), 9. Andre Warner, 8. Hacjivah Dayimani, 7. Ruan Vermaak, 6. Marnus Schoeman, 5. Marvin Orie, 4. Willem Alberts, 3. Frans van Wyk, 2. Jan-Henning Campher, 1. Dylan Smith.
Replacements: 16. Pieter Jansen, 17. Sti Sithole, 18. Carlu Sadie, 19. Wilhelm van der Sluys, 20. Len Massyn, 21. Morne van den Berg, 22. Shaun Reynolds, 23. Andries Coetzee

Scorers

Blues: 43 (22): Tries: Rieko Ioane (2), Stephen Perofeta, Gerard Cowley-Tuioti, Hoskins Sotutu. Conversions: Otere Black (3), Harry Plummer Penalties: Otere Black. Penalty Tries: 1

Lions: 10 (10): Tries: Dan Kriel. Conversions: Elton Jantjies. Penalties: Elton Jantjies

“Forwards win games, backs decide by how much.”