ACT Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham has challenged his team to respond after they were blown off the park by a physical Waikato Chiefs side on Sunday.
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The Brumbies were outplayed in every facet of the game in the 46-12 loss, with the Chiefs controlling the contest from the opening whistle.
The New Zealand side dominated the physical battle in both attack and defence, forcing their opponents on to the back foot as they ran in six tries to two in a commanding victory.
Larkham was disappointed with the performance and said his players must quickly regroup before Saturday's clash with the Western Force at Canberra Stadium.
"The physical battle went against us tonight," Larkham said.
"They were winning the collisions when they carried the ball and we didn't get enough pressure at the breakdown to slow it down.
"From an attacking perspective we struggled to maintain the ball for more than three phases. Everything went wrong in the first half for us. We couldn't build any pressure in attack and defensively we allowed them too much quick ball.
"It's up to us how we respond. We'll discuss this now and make sure we're on the right path going forward. Everyone is disappointed in the change room, normally you get a response when this happens."
The Brumbies were on the back foot from the opening whistle, Nick Frost dropping the kick off to put the Chiefs on the attack.
Larkham was particularly disappointed with the first half, with the match effectively over at half-time after Waikato raced away to a 25-7 lead.
Given it's only round two, the coach isn't panicking and won't make wholesale changes, but knows such a performance cannot happen again.
"We've got good discussions to have as a team now around what we need to change," Larkham said. "We have a six-day turnaround into the Force, we'll make sure the focus is there for our first home game.
"The most important thing is to flush this pretty quickly, get on to a couple of fixes we'll put into the program this week then look forward to playing at home for the first time this year."
The loss may have come at a cost, with Tom Hooper picking up a knee injury in the first half. The youngster played through the injury, but will undergo further scans to determine the severity of the injury.
Cadeyrn Neville also left the field in the dying minutes following a sickening collision that saw Chiefs prop Jared Proffit handed a red card. The veteran suffered a deep cut to his lip and will be monitored for a concussion.
The injuries come as the Brumbies battle lean lock depth, however the side is set to welcome back Darcy Swain after he turned out for the ACT Runners on Sunday morning.
Brumbies dealt reality check in heavy defeat
The ACT Brumbies have been dealt a reality check with a 34-point drubbing at the hands of the Waikato Chiefs.
Stephen Larkham's side travelled to Melbourne for the Super Round clash determined to avenge last year's semi-final defeat.
Instead, it was the Chiefs who delivered another body blow with a surgical dissection of the Brumbies.
Larkham's squad was outplayed in all facets of the game, conceding six tries in the 46-12 loss.
The result quickly burst a bubble of optimism in Australia that emerged after the NSW Waratahs' shock victory over the Canterbury Crusaders on Saturday night.
In an additional blow, Cadeyrn Neville left the field in the dying minutes for a head injury assessment after a vicious high tackle that saw Chiefs forward Jared Proffit red-carded.
The Brumbies were on the back foot from the opening whistle, Nick Frost spilling the kickoff in an error that set the tone for the afternoon.
![Waikato's Cortez Ratima races away to score in Sunday's convincing victory over the Brumbies. Picture Getty Images Waikato's Cortez Ratima races away to score in Sunday's convincing victory over the Brumbies. Picture Getty Images](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/GzY3iczng7SLWqVgHSV78t/d77b8abf-6011-47f5-b14b-ef4e3f28ef2f.jpg/r0_396_4347_2850_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Waikato ran their opponents ragged with an expansive attacking style that saw the ball shifting from sideline to sideline while physically dominating the Brumbies through the middle.
The Chiefs were near flawless with ball in hand, breaking tackles and generating quick ball to put the ACT defence on the back foot.
Flyhalf Damian McKenzie was pulling the strings, kicking for space and finding various holes in the Brumbies' defensive line.
The pressure led to 18 missed tackles and three tries in the first half as Waikato raced to a 25-7 half-time lead. The Chiefs missed just three tackles in the opening 40.
ACT finished the game with 32 missed tackles, conceding six tries in the convincing loss.
A piece of Corey Toole individual brilliance was one of few bright spots in the first period, the winger scoring from a chip and chase for the second-straight week.
Toole's try aside, the Brumbies struggled to generate any momentum in attack as the Chiefs swarmed defensively to prevent any quick ball and deny the backs space to run.
Waikato threatened to put the game to bed early in the second half, however ACT held firm to keep their noses in the contest.
Toole then gave his side a sniff with another superb finish in the corner to cut the deficit to 13 midway through the half.
The hope was shortlived, the Chiefs hitting straight back through Josh Ioane before Cortez Ratima landed the knockout blow with a pair of tries.
AT A GLANCE
WAIKATO CHIEFS 46 (Cortez Ratima 2, Xavier Roe, Etene Nanai-Seturo, Damian McKenzie, Josh Ioane, tries; Damian McKenzie 5 cons, 2 pens) bt ACT BRUMBIES 12 (Corey Toole 2 tries; Noah Lolesio con) at Melbourne.