No change at breakdown

MARK TAYLOR/The Waikato Times

TANERAU LATIMER: All down to attitude.

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Look for the Chiefs to attack the breakdowns aggressively again in their final Super 14 home rugby game against the Waratahs on Saturday night.

While they were caned with 18 penalties from Kiwi whistleblower Keith Brown against the Hurricanes in Wellington last weekend, the Chiefs don't believe they are doing too much wrong and have told both Brown and referees' boss Lyndon Bray so.

"The average penalty count against each team at the moment is just under 12 a game and we are sitting on that average for the competition – and that includes a 21 versus the Lions in that rather bizarre game and 18 last week," Chiefs coach Ian Foster said.

"So we were pretty frustrated with the penalty count against us (last Saturday) and have been doing a little bit of work with Keith and Lyndon in the last couple of days, getting a little bit of clarity over half a dozen of those penalties."

Foster said the Chiefs believed they were winning the contact area against the Hurricanes, who pipped them 34-27, and didn't deserve an above-average penalty count against them.

"We were pretty upset with a number of little things, but overall I thought Keith had a good game and perhaps our physicality at the breakdown just made it a little bit more complicated refereeing it."

Foster said the current system of communication between coaches and referees was the best they had had and referees were being trained during the week in response to that feedback.

Chiefs' Tanerau Latimer, who along with skipper Liam Messam, led the assault on the tackle area against the Hurricanes, said a lot of penalties at present were being awarded for players rolling on the opposition's side of the ball or for coming into the breakdown area from the side.

"We felt out of that 18 maybe about five of them were dubious," Latimer said.

"I think for us this week it's same as (usual), but with your actions make sure you really look like you're getting out of there, rather than sort of half getting in and half getting out, and are seen to be onside."

Latimer said it had been a definite step up in the contesting of the breakdown area by the Chiefs against the Hurricanes and it all came down to attitude.

"The leadership group got put on the spot just before we ran on and we had to step up, because it was a pretty young team we went down there with.

"We're bloody proud of the boys and their efforts after that game, but as you know it doesn't always win games and that's happened to us in the last 10 minutes of the last two games – we've let it slip."

Latimer said it had been tough on young replacement flanker Luke Braid to be yellow-carded soon after he came on the field, following a warning issued to the Chiefs by Brown just beforehand about the number of penalties they were conceding.

Braid appeared to make every effort to get away from the tackle area after making a tackle but was trapped by other players.

"He was ready to bin someone for all our penalties and unfortunately it was Luke who copped it."

Latimer said the Waratahs tended not to send many players to the breakdowns, preferring to fan out and set their defensive line.

He felt the Chiefs could take advantage of that just like the Highlanders did last weekend in Invercargill.

- © Fairfax NZ News