Rugby: Things going gloriously pear-shaped in kingdom of the Chiefs

Sonny Bill Williams of the Chiefs is tackled during the game against the Brumbies. Photo / Getty Images

Any injuries? It's a stock question for coaches among the usual post-match blah, blah, blahs.

"There'll be a bit of wounded pride, I imagine," was Dave Rennie's surprising response.

As it happened there were no serious ailments after their arm wrestle against the Brumbies. Just 22 cases of the above-mentioned wounded pride and just as many of suspected tinnitus as the Chiefs left Mt Maunganui with words of their coaches ringing in their ears.

Life has gone pleasantly pear-shaped in the kingdom of the Chiefs. It wasn't so long ago that Chiefs' coaches would be desperately trying to find reasons to be cheerful, now they're into the business of finding moral defeats.

"We weren't smart enough. We weren't accurate enough. We're pleased to get four points out of it but we're going to have to be a hell of a lot better the next time we play," said Rennie. That's right, the Chiefs won. They collected four points in the ghastly cauldron that is Baypark Stadium and they've got four points awaiting them for the bye. They'll travel to Sydney in a fortnight to play the Waratahs and no matter what happens next weekend, they'll be somewhere near the head of the table.

They're doing that even with their front-row stocks on empty and a forward pack that is light on big-name players.

All hail the conquering Chiefs - all except the conquering Chiefs themselves. Take Tanerau Latimer. "I felt I was a bit slow around the corner. They beat us around the corner in the first half and that's how they got their go-forward," was his frank assessment of his own game.

"We got a kick up the bum at halftime and changed our ways. We knew we were going to get a serve when we came into the changing rooms."

"We were too busy looking for offloads when we got the ball. Little things like that. Not getting under their shoulders on defence, getting carried, just real basic stuff like that."

The result of the halftime bollocking? "We got a bit tighter," Latimer said.

It is worth repeating: the Chiefs won. There's your coach with a face like Thor on a bad day and Latimer, a senior player who never gives less than 100 per cent, almost embarrassed by the way they'd played.

Yes, things are bad at the Chiefs.

Long may it continue.