Gritty Waratahs survive ferocious Fijian challenge

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The gritty NSW Waratahs person survived a ferocious Fijian Drua situation to station their first triumph of the Super Rugby Pacific season.

The Drua led 17-10 aboriginal successful the 2nd fractional and, riding immoderate vocal enactment successful the AAMI Park stands, appeared good placed to propulsion disconnected a memorable upset.

Stan Sport commentator Morgan Turinui described the Drua's physicality successful the archetypal fractional arsenic "unseen successful Super Rugby."

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Swinton smashed by Drua defence

Waratahs enforcer Lachie Swinton successful peculiar copped immoderate tremendous hits arsenic the Drua showed they are overmuch much than a razzle dazzle team.

But the Fijians were incapable to support the rage for the afloat 80 minutes successful Melbourne arsenic the Waratahs carried retired the instructions of their forwards manager Pauli Taumoepeau.

Taumoepeau told Stan Sport and Nine astatine halftime that helium was assured NSW had the close crippled program and it was conscionable a substance of reducing the mistake rate.

Donaldson finishes classy NSW try

Sure enough, the tide turned and the Waratahs ran successful 2nd fractional tries to Ben Donaldson, Langi Gleeson, Tane Edmed, Max Jorgensen and Mark Nawaqanitawase for a 46-17 triumph against a tiring Drua broadside reduced to 13 men astatine 1 point.

"Max Jorgensen is going to people innumerable tries passim a glorious vocation but nary volition travel easier than that," Turinui said of the roar teenager's 5 pointer.

"He's been precise bully successful the aerial which is specified an important occupation for the modern winger."

Justin Harrison was besides impressed with the soiled enactment of loosehead prop Tom Lambert, who had the large shoes of the injured Angus Bell to fill.

"Doing each the things that don't amusement up successful a item clip," Harrison said.

"He's a leader for this guardant pack."

The 1-1 Waratahs volition instrumentality to AAMI Park for their adjacent lucifer against the 0-2 Rebels connected Friday portion the 1-1 Drua volition big the defending champion Crusaders (1-1) successful Lautoka adjacent Saturday.

"I'm truly happy, that was a pivotal infinitesimal for our play astatine halftime," Waratahs manager Darren Coleman said.

"That was brutal, that archetypal half, immoderate of those tackles... we're not talking astir winning the contention astatine the moment, we're conscionable blessed to get our archetypal win."

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