Super Rugby: Waratahs cruise to Sydney success against Lions
Waratahs recorded their second successive Super Rugby win to close in on the Brumbies with a 41-13 win over the Lions.
Last Updated: 18/05/14 7:01pm
The hosts posted five tries as fly-half Bernard Foley gave Australia coach Ewen McKenzie with a virtuoso performance.
With results elsewhere going their way, the five points from this success now sees Waratahs just a point behind Brumbies at the head of the Australian Conference, with their next opponents being the Rebels on Friday.
The decisive passage of play in Sydney came in the first 10 minutes of the second-half, as Waratahs struck twice. First, winger Rob Horne cut inside and zipped past Chrysander Botha to touch down.
Then Adam Ashley-Cooper went over a few minutes later, winning the race to catch Kurtley Beale's delightful chip over the top, securing the bonus point at the same time.
Earlier, Foley was another to have stepped inside and the get the better of the defensive line, conjuring up Waratahs' opening try himself, before adding the conversion.
Lions were tenacious throughout and gained some reward for that when a brilliant piece of mauling enabled Jaco Kriel to touch down under a pile of players to get them back in it.
Foley and Boshoff exchanged penalties, before Foley collected the ball from a five-metre scrum and put in a pinpoint grubber for Beale to score.
A second Boshoff penalty kept Lions in it until half-time, before that two-try spell confirmed Waratahs' superiority.
With the final whistle approaching, Israel Folau made a lovely break and set up Horne for his second try. Foley converted to bring up 40 points in the process.