Waratahs had it all to play for. One part of their game was embarrassing

When another disappointing Waratahs season is dissected at the end of the campaign, the 31-26 loss to the Highlanders will be hard evidence of how much they have relied on warhorse captain Matt Philip.

Without Philip, the Waratahs’ tight five looked big in stature but didn’t play big: a criticism that is starting to stick like mud to some of their individuals up front.

Their scrum was decimated, and when they gave up a soft maul turnover after 15 minutes, coach Dan McKellar looked like he was ready to explode.

The Highlanders have an exceptional scrum, but their level of domination from the outset was borderline embarrassing for the Waratahs.

It can only be inferred that the Waratahs’ attitude wasn’t right, despite the fixture’s critical importance to their play-off hopes.

It’s no guarantee Suaalii will start for the Wallabies

If the Wallaby is going to shoot out of the defensive line, he needs to make those tackles stick. But he had bad misses on two players leading to the Highlanders’ first try, and the absence of Joey Walton in the midfield – another glue player like Philip – was keenly felt.

The Suaalii scrutiny can be overboard, but he’s inviting it with plays like that. He certainly posted good attack statistics, but that was against a Highlanders team that played without a midfielder for 30 minutes.

The intelligent Six Nations teams arriving in July know how to attack that No.13 channel, so Suaalii’s defensive issues are a concern. The debate about his best position is firmly back on the table, with Hunter Paisami currently playing the house down at No.12 for the Reds and Len Ikitau being a natural No.13.

At present, there is a scenario where Suaalii doesn’t necessarily start for Australia.

Lomax impresses again – but there’s an asterisk attached

Cross-code convert Zac Lomax will be a Wallaby in July at this rate of progress. He seems almost unnaturally at ease in the 15-man game.

While he potentially looked a bit narrow defensively on Brumbies winger Ollie Sapsford’s try in Canberra, that was more due to the quality of the pass from Brumbies halfback Ryan Lonergan.

Lomax’s kick chase was outstanding again; even if he didn’t grab the Force’s box kicks, he did enough to cause issues for the Brumbies’ back three.

But almost paradoxically, his strength under the high ball is a bit of a trap. There were a few signs on Saturday that the Force were overdoing the tactic, particularly in the second half. They need to work hard to make sure they are pulling the trigger in attack rather than just falling for the default option of a kick for Lomax.

It is a tricky balancing act, because Dylan Pietsch and Mac Grealy are on fire in the wider channels and need space. But as an individual making his first steps in rugby, Lomax is way ahead of schedule.

Brumbies win a game of two halfbacks

Mark down the 14th-minute of the Force’s 32-15 loss to the Brumbies in Canberra on Saturday as the moment their play-off hopes were dashed. That’s when in-form halfback Henry Robertson was injured with what looked a relatively serious knee injury.

His replacement, Nathan Hastie, is an elite box-kicker and can attack with his running game, but he lacks Robertson’s overall snap. By contrast, Brumbies halfback Ryan Lonergan confirmed his standout display makes him the form Australian halfback in Super Rugby.

The Brumbies’ game isn’t good enough to win the title, but Lonergan has arguably been the difference between them making the play-offs or not.

Wallabies captain back to his best

The Reds will have legitimate grievances about the officiating in their 31-21 loss to the Chiefs in Brisbane; the normally mild-mannered Les Kiss was visibly incredulous at some of the decisions. But both Kiss and Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt will be delighted by Harry Wilson’s form at No 8.

Wilson took the Chiefs on physically, and his offload to set up Joe Brial’s try was superb. Wilson’s form is critically important.

Ireland No.8 and captain Caelan Doris missed the British and Irish Lions tour due to injury last year, but has been playing the house down for Leinster recently.

The Wilson-Doris clash could be the most juicy individual match-up of the Wallabies’ July series.

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