Giteau seals Force win
Justin Chadwick at Subiaco
Sportal


An after-the-siren penalty from Matt Giteau has lifted the Force to a nail-biting 22-21 victory over the Chiefs in front of 21,549 fans at Subiaco Oval on Saturday night.

The Force led 14-3 at the break and looked set for victory when they held a 19-8 advantage with just 18 minutes to play, but the Chiefs scored two tries in the final 15 minutes to catapult themselves back into the contest.

A drop goal from centre Callum Bruce with 3.45 left on the clock gave the Chiefs a 21-19 lead but, in a frenetic finish to the match, the Force stole the win when Giteau nailed a penalty from 22m out and on a 45-degree angle.

The Force's fifth triumph of the season snaps the Chiefs' five-game winning streak and threatens to derail the New Zealand-franchise's top-four aspirations.

The Chiefs (7-4) must win their final two games - against the lowly Lions and the Sharks - to have any chance of sneaking into the semi-finals, while the Force (6-5) must also win their final two games and rely on a myriad of other results to go their way to have any chance of finals football.

The Force made the perfect start to the contest with No. 8 Matt Hodgson charging down Jamie Nutbrown's attempted clearance and crossing over for a try in the fourth minute.

The visitors got on the board through a Stephen Donald penalty but the Chiefs were well and truly on the back foot when a piece of Drew Mitchell magic saw the Force cross again in the 11th minute.

After a series of passes, Mitchell received the ball on the wing and the 24-year-old shook off three tackles before touching down in the corner.

At 14-3 down the Chiefs needed a steadying influence but Donald failed to provide it, missing two simple penalties, including one from just 15m out and directly in front, to let the Force off the hook.

The visitors faced an 11-point deficit at the break but had their first try of the night two minutes after the restart when a slicing run from Sitivini Sivivatu released Lelia Masaga on the wing.

A desperate tackle from Mitchell proved fruitless as Masaga crossed over for the points.

Donald's kicking yips continued and it proved to be contagious, with Giteau missing two gettable penalties up the other end as the teams entered the final quarter with the Force leading 14-8.

A mesmerising run from O'Connor set up Force scrumhalf James Stannard for a 62nd-minute try but the Chiefs hit back against a napping Force defence three minutes later, with Donald's try and conversion closing the gap to 19-15 with 15 minutes to play.

The Chiefs closed to within one point courtesy of another Donald penalty before Bruce put the visitors in front with a coolly-taken drop goal 20m out.

But the visitors' lead was short-lived.

Although Cameron Shepherd was denied a try by the video referee with three seconds left on the clock - with a penalty advantage being played - Giteau calmly slotted the penalty to keep the Force's ever-so-faint finals hopes alive.

Western Force 22

Tries: Mitchell, Hodgson, Stannard 1

Conversions: Giteau 2

Penalties: Giteau

Chiefs 21

Tries: Masaga, Donald 1

Conversions: Donald 1

Penalties: Donald 2

Drop goals: Bruce 1

@Subiaco Oval, Perth; 03/05/08.

Crowd: 21,549