Super Rugby: Time running out as Kiwi teams eye Blues' new weaknesses

The Blues get into a huddle after the loss to the Brumbies. Photosport

Physically dominated by the Brumbies and still yet to win an away game this season, the Blues have slipped to 13th on the Super Rugby ladder but remarkably are still in with a shot of making the playoffs due to the unpredictability of this competition.

And while their 26-21 defeat in Canberra might not necessarily have been a huge surprise given the Blues' inconsistency over the past month, the manner of it will.

Their scrum was in near disarray at the end and their lineout maul defence similarly shambolic although despite all of that and the near constant pressure the Brumbies put them under in the second half, the Blues could have got something more out of it had Otere Black kicked two regulation penalties in the first half.

It will be Groundhog Day again for coach Leon MacDonald who will be frustrated that the lessons aren't being learned and with the added twist that their next three opponents, the Hurricanes, Chiefs and Crusaders will be gunning for them up front.

The Blues' pack was in penalty trouble for the majority of the match at GIO Stadium, with props Alex Hodgman and Ofa Tuungafasi shown yellow cards and the home side made a mockery of the recent improvements to the Blues' scrum and mauling.

There are still six rounds to go but the Blues need to start winning matches in order to get back into the top eight. It appears beyond them because while they are only three competition points from the eighth-placed Stormers, the Brumbies, Reds, Lions and Waratahs are ahead of them and have similar ambitions.

The good news is the Blues are back at Eden Park for the next fortnight, the bad is that their opposition are the Hurricanes on Friday and the Chiefs eight days later.

Neither of those two Kiwi teams will have missed the fact the Brumbies too easily starved the Blues of territory and possession after a bright first 10 minutes during which they shot to a 12-0 lead.

Given the quality on their reserves bench; Karl Tu'inukuafe, who had to replace Hodgman in the first half, Patrick Tuipulotu and Dalton Papalii, the Blues would have been positive at halftime given they were still leading 15-12 but in the end they had few answers, with Brumbies hooker Folau Fainga'a scoring a hat-trick of tries from lineout drives.

"We started well and I thought early on some of the carries from our forwards created some good momentum and our backs created off it," coach MacDonald said afterwards. "There were periods that we were really happy with.
 
"We've put periods of good play together all season but we're struggling to do that for long enough periods of time so that's our big work-on.

"Tonight we got put under the pump at maul time and scrum time and they did a great job of it.

"They kept the pressure on and didn't relent and in the end it was an impressive performance considering their travel schedule [a trip home from South Africa via Argentina] and what they've been through. They showed a lot of heart and thoroughly deserved their win."

The front-running Crusaders were poor in their 21-all draw against the Sharks in Christchurch but remain firmly in control of claiming top spot as they are on 42 competition points – six more than the next best Hurricanes.

Scott Robertson's men normally thrive in the wet but they struggled against a Sharks side as defensively good as any they have played this season.

The Crusaders have left for Pretoria and their next game against the Bulls without Sam Whitelock, but their skipper, who didn't play against the Sharks, will join them a week later in Cape Town for the match against the Stormers.

The Highlanders, in sixth after their incredible 31-all draw against the Chiefs in Dunedin, remain in the finals mix. The Chiefs, 14th, did well to claw their way back but badly needed a win.