Waratahs 29
Wallaby coach Robbie Deans has an interesting conundrum at first five-eighths for the World Cup - Quade Cooper, Berrick Barnes or Matt Giteau.
All three will likely be in the squad, although Giteau could be used more at 12 than 10, but it will be a difficult choice selecting the starting playmaker.
Barnes and Giteau squared off against each other last night in a game as tight as you would expect from a team that lost all too easily to the Cheetahs (the Waratahs) last week; and one which was on a three-match losing streak (the Brumbies).
It meant a low-risk, stiff-defence, arm-wrestle sort of a match; a little like test rugby in its jockeying for position, safety-first, wait-for-the-mistakes kind of way.
The first half mostly became an exchange of penalties (four each) with both first fives concentrating on directing play.
Barnes has a silky quality - tactically aware, with accurate, long passes, smooth running and long kicking for position. Giteau is better at taking the ball to the defensive line and sparking line breaks - although there were precious few of those in the first half.
Both may struggle to unseat the highly creative Quade Cooper, who plays for the Reds and who is coming into real form now, though Deans may prefer a more conventional No 10 for certain opponents.
Cooper is a decided asset with touches of brilliance, but also has moments of poor judgement and execution. There is still a question mark over his defence at the top level, even though he has been working on it.
Wallaby and Waratahs winger Drew Mitchell looked the most damaging back on display but had about as many chances to show it in the first half as there are pubs on Ayers Rock.
In the second half, the Brumbies stepped up the pace - though it was Barnes who began the stronger of the two with a line break which created a chance for the Waratahs, though he rather ruined things by passing forward from the follow-up action. Barnes then contributed a try-saving, turnover-forcing tackle on a Brumbies forward as they threatened the other goal line.
But it was a Giteau up-and-under which created problems in the Waratahs defence, with second five-eighths Tom Carter sin-binned for throwing the ball away under pressure - and Giteau goaled his fifth penalty from six attempts to take them to 15-12. That, however, was the sole punishment for Carter's sin-binning.
The game had settled into a pattern - the Waratahs kicking, playing for position and using their efficient defence to smother their Canberra rivals; the Brumbies were attempting run it and to counter-attack off Waratahs kicks.
But the two sides were cancelling each other out - until a little bit of skill from Barnes and a large bit of skill from fullback Kurtley Beale. Barnes' pass put Beale into space, he put the defence in two minds and then stabbed through a little, rinky-dink, gentle grubber of butterfly proportions which centre Ryan Cross claimed to score.
Beale added the conversion from the sideline and, all of a sudden, with 19 minutes to go, the Waratahs had a clear (19-15) lead for the first time. Barnes was ahead on points against Giteau when he went off - another head knock and his rubbery legs betrayed the fact that he might have a bit of a problem with concussions.
Beale moved into first five - another option for Deans, should it be needed - and he kicked his fifth penalty to move the Waratahs ahead 22-15. Then it all went wrong.
The Waratahs defence was doing its job stifling the Brumbies and Beale went to clear the Waratahs line. Giteau saw the kick coming; knew that Beale - like New Zealand's Stephen Donald - can take too long sometimes getting ball to boot; and charged it down.
From the ensuing scramble, Brumbies prop Ben Alexander drove over to score. Stung, the Waratahs swept back with a break from Carter and Beale's stab kick should have yielded a try had replacement winger Afa Pakalani been able to force it.
But they kept plugging at the Brumbies line and, right on time, replacement forward Sitaleki Timani reached out for the try.
Brumbies 22 (B. Alexander try; M. Giteau con, 5 pen), Waratahs 29 (R. Cross, S. Timani tries; K. Beale 5 pen, 2 con). Halftime: 12-12.
