Wales stutter to victory
Wales clung on to clinch a nail-biting 25-15 victory over Brumbies in their tour match on Tuesday.
Last Updated: 12/06/12 12:53pm
Wales clung on to clinch a nail-biting 25-15 victory over Brumbies in their tour match at Canberra Stadium.
James Hook, Justin Tipuric and Alun Wyn Jones all crossed for tries in the first half to give the Wales second string line-up a 19-6 lead.
However the boot of Zack Holmes kept their Super Rugby hosts in touch - with the Brumbies cutting the deficit to just four points at one stage, while they were guilty of butchering a golden chance to score a try.
Hook, though, tagged on two late penalties to his two earlier conversions to close out the game.
Wales had been hoping for their fringe players to put in a morale-boosting display following the first Test loss to Australia.
Guilty
However, despite the Brumbies themselves fielding a weakened team, Wales never really got into their stride.
Hook scored the opening try when he snuck over following a sustained spell of pressure, while the Wales fly-half linked up with the impressive Ashley Beck as Tipuric doubled their tally.
A convincing win seemed on the cards when Jones powered over after good work from Beck just before the break.
However, Wales were guilty of conceding too many penalties - allowing Holmes to chip away at the scoreboard.
Hook, though, kept his nerve with two late penalties taking his personal tally to 15 points.
Tipuric told wru.co.uk: "It was fast and very tough at the breakdown tonight - it was great experience for the guys to play against a Super 15 side. We tried to target the breakdown area.
"It's obviously refereed differently over here and another learning curve for the guys so the win is a great boost for the squad going into the second Test against Australia on Saturday."
