Sam Talakai made his mark with an outstanding try for the Rebels during their 52-14 victory over the Western Force in Friday’s Super Rugby Pacific derby in Melbourne.
The Wallaby tighthead prop pounced on a loose ball – after a messy lineout inside the Force’s 22 – before setting off towards the try-line.
Talakai still had plenty of work to do but showed great determination and leg drive as he powered through three defenders before diving over for a well-taken try in the 34th minute.
⏱️ Half-time in #SuperRugbyPacific:
🛡️ Melbourne Rebels 19-7 Western Force 🔵 #REBvFOR
🔢 Follow the second half action live, here. 👉 https://t.co/9QhwfKd1aupic.twitter.com/zP6fkYBU0y
— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) May 26, 2023
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Reece Hodge succeeded with the conversion which put the Rebels in control of proceedings and they went into the half-time break with their tails up as they held a 19-7 lead.
Earlier, the Force had made a bright start when Sam Spink opened the scoring with Max Burey adding the extras to give the visitors a 7-0 lead.
The Rebels replied with tries in quick succession from Ryan Louwrens and Brad Wilkin, before Talakai crossed for their third try to give them the upper-hand at half-time.
The hosts continued to dominate in the second half and shortly after the restart Josh Kemeny scored their second try, before Richard Hardwick went over for another converted five-pointer which gave the hosts a comfortable 31-7 lead.
The Force struck back on the hour-mark when Spink dotted down again but that was the last time they would score points as the Rebels finished stronger during the final quarter.
In the 67th minute, Lachie Anderson rounded off a flowing move to hammer home the Rebels’ advantage and they did not take their foot off the pedal during the game’s closing stages.
That tactic paid off as converted tries from Nick Jooste and Vaiolini Ekuasi sealed an emphatic victory and kept their hopes of reaching Super Rugby Pacific‘s play-offs alive with one round of matches of the league phase of the competition left to play.
Video credit: Super Rugby Pacific
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