Hurricanes 23
Stormers 19
The Hurricanes scored two tries in an epic last five minutes at Newlands yesterday.
Down 13-19 with nine minutes to play, Hurricanes captain Rodney So'oialo ordered a kick for touch from a kickable penalty in an effort to chase a converted try for victory.
The Hurricanes
won the ensuing lineout, set up a solid maul but lost the ball and, it appeared, any chances of a victory.
But patience paid off when openside flanker Chris Masoe gained crucial forward momentum from a scrum which was carried on by Jerry Collins before the ball was whipped to the right by replacement playmaker Jimmy Gopperth and second five-eighth Tane Tu'ipulotu finished it off.
Gopperth missed the conversion and the Hurricanes trailed 18-19.
The Stormers, sensing a determined Hurricanes comeback, tried to keep the ball as far away as possible from their own line and a kick deep into Hurricanes territory was fielded by fullback Isaia Toeava.
He sparked a delightful counter-attack in which centre Ma'a Nonu went up the right side of the field with a typically powerful run before the ball was moved swiftly to the left through the hands of halfback Piri Weepu and Tu'ipulotu.
Winger Hosea Gear had little room to move when he took the final pass 20m out but fended off three tacklers before scoring the winner.
"I guess the patience paid off," coach Colin Cooper said.
"We did everything to lose it [in the first half] but they hung in there and came back to score the two tries."
The Hurricanes scored all three of their tries in the second half after being starved of possession and territory in the first half.
They lost what little possession they managed to get from an erratic lineout and couldn't hold on to the ball for any significant period to test the Stormers defence.
Stormers flanker Schalk Burger and second five-eighth Jean de Villiers troubled the Hurricanes the most.
To make matters worse, the Hurricanes were pinged for handling in the ruck, not rolling away in the tackle and a high tackle.
Cooper said their next match - against the Bulls - would probably be their toughest in South Africa.
- NZPA
