Waratahs 39 Blues 32
The Blues may well spend most of today wondering how they came so near but ended up so far from victory in Sydney.
They were one pass away from having this game in the bag. They had ripped open the Waratahs, had numbers on the left and were two metres
from the line.
Taniela Moa just had to pop to the right man and it was all over - the Blues would have been 10 points clear with five minutes to go.
But Moa picked the wrong man and Lachie Turner took the easiest intercept of his career and went all the way to the other end to score a try that changed everything.
The Blues would have been worthy winners - absolutely deserving of their five points.
But they can't lift their heads early like the Saturday morning golf hacker. At this level, you have to see things through and they didn't.
Which was a shame as they are a side that has sprung into the most dramatic life. A side that has a surprising resilience and depth of character.
They were 21-7 down after 20 minutes and were being torn apart by a Waratahs outfit.
And yet they reached the break just two points behind.
It was a scoreline that would have had the Poms choking into their poached eggs, but don't be fooled - this was full-blooded, proper rugby where the set-pieces were willing, the tackled ball scrapped for and the tackles made.
What took the Blues so close was their deadly attacking intent. They can now score at will and their use of the ball is up there with the best teams in the competition.
Last night they were happy to run from everywhere. It worked superbly well for them. As an out-and-out attacking first five, Stephen Brett is a smart operator.
He took the ball flat and moved it cleverly, always knowing who the right man to pass to was.
He threw one outrageously good pass late in the first half that flew over the top of two Waratahs defenders and left Joe Rokocoko in acres of space that should have been more than enough for him to score from.
Even when Rokocoko ambled to within metres and blew the opportunity, there was no panic within the Blues' ranks. They had this confidence that if they stuck to their knitting, the tries would come.
That's because they have structure and individuals coming into top form.
Alby Mathewson enjoyed another big night where he did his core job well and pitched in with sharp breaks.
When he ran, he scrambled the Waratahs defence and opened space for others.
Brett had the confidence to run from deep when he thought it was on and that kept the Waratahs thinking.
The midfield had balance and poise and the combination of Benson Stanley and Rene Ranger feels the right one for the Blues.
Stanley, as he did against the Brumbies, made a lot of small but significant touches where he was able to play Ranger into space.
As for Ranger, he was heavily marked as a consequence of busts the previous week but he still managed to look dangerous and cause problems.
Part of the attraction of keeping Ranger at centre is that the back three have struck up an effective understanding.
Isaia Toeava was composed and certain at fullback and he seems to have fixed his natural tendency to throw risky passes that are never on.
With his decision-making much improved, the Blues were never in self-inflicted trouble deep inside their own territory so it didn't dent their confidence to keep running from within their own half.
That was crucial. Mistakes are a killer of ambition and the Blues had plenty of that.
Waratahs 39 (D. Halangahu (2), D. Mumm, T. P-Nau, L. Turner tries; D. Halangahu 4 cons, 2 pens) Blues 32 (R. Ranger (2), R. Wulf, I. Toeava tries; S. Brett 3 cons, 2 pens)
