Rugby: Tana Umaga backs players over crucial scrum call

Head coach of the Blues Tana Umaga. Photo / Getty Images

Right now the Blues players will be wondering where their next victory is coming from so it's probably no surprise that coach Tana Umaga has refused to second-guess a crucial decision which may have contributed to the Chiefs' late winning try.

It came in the dying moments in Hamilton, the Blues up 19-14 with seven minutes remaining, showing rare grit and determination to fight back against the Chiefs only to concede a penalty try for collapsing an undermanned defensive scrum.

The automatic seven points awarded to the Chiefs knocked the stuffing from Umaga's men for a 21-14 win but the question remains; would the visitors' scrum have gone backwards so quickly had they sent a back into the set piece to replace sinbinned lock Josh Goodhue?

The Chiefs, strangely off-key after an excellent start to the match, would have attacked the scrum regardless, but another Blues body might have made a difference.

For Umaga, it was a moot point and not worth dwelling on, although a message might be sent in private when this defeat, their fifth in six games, is analysed. For Umaga and the Blues, the bottom line is they are 14th on the table, with only the winless Sunwolves below them.

After the highs of a few weeks ago when they came back so brilliantly to beat the Lions in Johanesburg, they are now truly down in the dumps, their playoff ambitions once again in tatters.

"Hindsight's a great thing," said Umaga when asked afterwards about the crucial seven-man scrum. "On the field they talked about chucking someone in there but made the decision not to go with it. You've got to trust those guys to do that. They'll probably think 'would that have made a difference after the way they were dominating'. It's a tough one."

Blues winger Matt Duffie is tackled. Photo / Photosport

Wing Matt Duffie said: "There were discussions in the backs but that's something that's probably for the forwards to make an executive decision on and we back them on that decision. It's unfortunate but that's just the way it is."

The Blues courted danger throughout the second half with their inability to get into a single attacking position against the Chiefs and although the home side couldn't quite find their mojo with ball in hand, sheer weight of position and territory meant it was inevitable that the dam would eventually break.

Umaga must now pick up the pieces and prepare his side for a match against the Sunwolves in Tokyo on Saturday, a fixture not without its perils as demonstrated last season. Another defeat at the Prince Chichibu Memorial Stadium would make his position at the franchise – he is in the final year of a three-year deal - close to untenable.

"We're a resilient group; we have to be with the way out results are going," Umaga said. "We don't believe we're too far away. There are little things we can improve on every week.

"The adjustment for us is to make sure we don't forget about the good things we're doing. We have to focus on something during the week – they do so many good things and yet sometimes they forget and only focus on one thing."

Duffie said: "The boys are hurting. Obviously we put in a big effort and to come out on the other side of the scoresheet is hard. There's no lack of belief in the group, we all want to play for each other, and that showed tonight. It would have been easy to roll over."

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