Rugby Europe Super Cup 2022: Fourth Round
The Lusitanos lost their first match in the pool stage of the Rugby Europe Super Cup.
Written by: Nuno Madeira do O
The best part:
– A rugby match full of emotion, where the victor was undecided until the very end.
– The Lusitanos’ tries were excellent, full of pace and technique – more of the same from this team.
The not-so-good part:
– In the last match, in Valladolid, we wrote that the Lusitanos had made a lot of mistakes and that they were lucky that the Iberians were having a bad day. This time, it wasn’t the same. Even though the team defended well, their offence seemed always a bit rushed, with the players wanting to do everything at the same time.
– Another aspect, and this one more concerning than the mistakes the team made, was the lack of an alternative offensive plan. The Lusitanos tried time and time again to play from the back, from all the areas of the pitch. However, the Iberians had done their homework and managed to stop those exits (high pressure no some key players). However, the team carried on playing that same type of rugby and didn’t show any alternatives.
Player of the match: On the Portuguese side, similarly to the match in Spain, the back row (this time with Granate-Wallis-Simões) played very well, winning several turnovers and leaving their hearts on the pitch. Nuno Sousa Guedes had a great match, scoring a try, assisting for another and causing all sorts of problems for the Iberian defence. However, the player of the match award goes to Siosiua Moala. The New Zealander was the engine of his team’s offence, winning metre after metre, due to several powerful carries. To make things even better, he scored his team’s third try, winning the match for them.
Those who follow the Lusitanos knew that this was going to be a very tight match, that was going to be decided in small details. In Valladolid, the Lusitanos had won by two points only (20-22) and the Iberians came to this match wanting to turn things around (the Lusitanos had won the last three matches between the two teams).
With less than two minutes on the clock, John Bell ran for about 40m before passing to the captain Casteglioni that score the first try of the match (0-5).
This try signalled what were going to be 25 crazy minutes of rugby. Possession changing constantly with the Lusitanos trying to turn things around as soon as possible. With six minutes of play, the Portuguese team had a great play (through a break from Manuel Cardoso Pinto), full of offloads and that culminated with a penalty won inside the Spanish 22 and a yellow card for Valentin Bustos. Kick to the corner, line out won but a knock-on killed any chances for success.
Wanting to take advantage of having one more player on the pitch, the Lusitanos stayed on top and scored with 15 minutes on the clock: line out won inside the Spanish half with the ball rapidly going through the Portuguese backs until it reached Nuno Sousa Guedes. The Portuguese full-back ran for 40m, got rid of two defenders and scored in the corner and the scoreboard changed to 7-5 to the home team.
However, the Iberians scored again two minutes later: the Lusitanos trying to build from the back but losing the ball (good pressure from the Iberians) and try scored quickly (7-12). And the home team? Kick-off, ball to Sousa Guedes, another 50m break and the assist to Manuel Cardoso Pinto that scored. Sousa Guedes missed the conversion and the match was tied at 12.
The remaining 15 minutes of the first half weren’t as eventful and, at the break, the teams were tied at 12 and had all to play for in the second half.
The Iberians came back from the changing rooms wanting to score again and won a penalty in the Portuguese half. However, the “Puma” Tomás Carrio was having an uninspired day and missed the kick.
Like the first half, the match was quite frantic, with possession changing constantly but the Lusitanos had difficulty in playing, due the constant high pressure from the Spanish defence. With 56 minutes on the clock, the Iberians won another penalty – this time in the Portuguese 22 – but Carrio missed again.
However, four minutes later, they scored: line out won, an unstoppable driving maul and Moala crossing the try line. 12-17 on the board with 20 minutes to play.
Until the end of the match, the Lusitanos were almost constantly inside the Spanish half but there was always a pass, a carry or a decision that went wrong and they didn’t manage to score again.
Despite the defeat, the Lusitanos are still top of the Western Conference (due to point difference) and are almost through to the semi-finals. The next match is on the 22nd October, in Brussels, against the Devils.
