The Rebels have limped out of the gate, being shown up by the Sunwolves in a 36-27 boilover at Fukuoka Hakatanomori Stadium.
What are we talking about?
Worrying times for Wessels
The Rebels fielded younger teams in their two trial games and both matches had resulted in heavy losses to the Reds and Brumbies.
But with a star-studded Wallabies backline and some of the most promising forwards in Australian rugby, there was no doubt confidence that the experience of the first-choice team would be enough to see off the unfancied Sunwolves.
The gamble backfired and provided the worst possible start for head coach Dave Wessels.
Since moving to Melbourne in 2018, Wessels' tenure with the Rebels has been consistently inconsistent, with promising starts ruined by fade outs at the end of the last two seasons.
While statistically the last two years have been some of the most positive in Rebels history, a lack of a maiden finals berth and the underperformance of a talented squad turned the spotlight on Wessels.
And Wessels admitted ahead of the season launch that he considered walking away from the club after last season due to the pressure.
Wessels looks to have been trying to stop that inconsistency that has plagued previous seasons and start building up the talent below the first string Rebels side.
But judging by this lacklustre performance of the first-string side, Wessels and his coaching staff will have their work cut out if they want the Rebels to make their finals debut in 2020.
Inconsistency keeping Rebels from unlocking potential
The Rebels spent the vast majority of this game chasing the Sunwolves, in a performance that saw them playing like a team that still looked to be finding cohesion.
It looked to be an undercooked team.
🦵Andrew Kellaway with the kick and chase! However it wasn't enough as the @MelbourneRebels lost 36-27 to the @sunwolves. #SuperRugby
— RUGBYcomau (@rugbycomau) February 1, 2020
READ: https://t.co/5BJiCkGN2M pic.twitter.com/fE28EDlHX5
Even though they had more of the ball, the Rebels struggled to play the opposition in front of them, and their inconsistency at set piece often stifled many of their attacking opportunities. Additionally, their defensive patterns also looked rocky, overcommitting several times in open play, resulting in the Sunwolves attack finding gaps and capitalising.
This is a Rebels side that is capable of much better, but were comprehensively played off the pitch, especially in the forward pack.
Reece Hodge did have a couple of strong moments, making over ten tackles, while Marika Koroibete and Andrew Kellaway also looked dangerous on occasion, with the latter scoring a great try off a chip-kick.
Halves combinations yields mixed results
Matt Toomua has been touted by many as the leading flyhalf prospect for the Wallabies this year, and his selection for the Rebels suggested he would be looking to further refine his game from being an impact player to a composed 80-minute game controller.
Unfortunately, it was a lacklustre afternoon for Toomua. He struggled with the boot as well as getting fluid ball to the backline for most of the game, and he appeared to lack his traditional mongrel in defence.
Toomua and scrum half Frank Lomani also looked to be still finding their feet as a combination.
Both are talented men and things looked a lot more positive in the second half as the Rebels began to string together phases and play wider to stretch the Sunwolves’ attack.
But by that stage it was almost too little, too late.
Aussies stand up for the Sunwolves
For the home side, it was the perfect way to kick off their final season in Super Rugby.
The victory marks the first time the Sunwolves have ever beaten the Rebels, the first time they have started their season with a win, and was just their ninth win overall. It also marks the first time ever that they’ve lead the Australian conference.
However, to add insult to injury, two of the biggest stand out performances were from former Brumby James Dargaville and former Red/Rebel Jake Schatz.
Dargaville had an outstanding game at fullback, which included a superb solo try against the run of play, while Schatz, as skipper of the Sunwolves, helped orchestrate a dominate performance in the scrum and in the lineout.
Add to the fact that a near capacity crowd in Fukuoka witnessed the victory, and you couldn’t have asked for a perfect start to their farewell season.
Interesting battle for the Australian conference shapes up
After the close match between the Brumbies and the Reds and an encouraging performance by a young Waratah outfit in Christchurch, this victory by the Sunwolves suggests that the battle for the top of the conference may be closer than many may think this year.
If the Sunwolves maintain that level of performance while keeping the underdog (pardon the pun) tagline, they might have the potential to upset a lot more outfits.
Given they will be removed from Super Rugby at the end of the year, the Sunwolves are able to play with no fear, and this makes the team a potentially dangerous banana skin for other teams who are looking to challenge for the Super Rugby title.
This means that matches for the stronger Australian teams against the Sunwolves might become increasingly high-stake affairs, especially if the Japanese franchise starts to string wins together.
