RugbyRebels

Blues have been great in the second half. Akira Ioane has had the game he’s been threatening to for a while.

Blues finally got it together and held on for the full 80 against a Sunwolves side that would have had reasonable expectations of a win.

SBW was actually pretty good as captain, and the team was far more cohesive. It helped that they had a referee not afraid to penalise the other side for a change, as opposed to Nick Briant, who was more concerned with giving the Crusaders a handjob rather than actually policing the Crusaders. Funny how an intentional knock-on is a yellow-card offence now.

Think it's safe to say that the influence of a proper coaching setup is starting to shine through. Forwards getting stuck in to the tune of dominating possession in every half of rugby bar one, and the backs have an actual plan. Sure there's been a few fluff ups, but it'll get better. Particularly when the young first fives get settled.

That being the case, MacDonald absolutely needs to be retained until at least 2023. Ideally until 2027, I'd say (ditto Coventry, if possible). That'd really let him get stuck in and setup all the structures needed to sustain a modern franchise. By the time he moves on -- whenever that may be -- we'll need a setup that's more post-Deans Crusaders, than post-Rennie Chiefs.

It's interesting to see how the Blues can actually win when they get a referee who controls the game like he hasn't already decided who will win before kick-off.