Brumbies captain Allan Alaalatoa is gracious in defeat and predictably bemoaning that soft start to the game which basically ended the contest.
“We weren’t clinical coming out of our half and we gave them three balls off our kickoff receipt,” the prop told Stan Sport after the 34-20 Super Rugby Pacific semi-final loss to the Blues at Eden Park.
“They made us pay through tries. We tried to fight hard from there but they got too much of a lead at the start of the game. It’s a tough lesson for us in the finals, especially against the Blues at their home stadium. You can’t give them that lead early on in the game and it’s a tough lesson for us at the moment.”