Brumbies smash Super strugglers Sunwolves

The Brumbies will head into the June international break on top of the Australian Super Rugby conference after scoring an important 64-5 bonus-point win over strugglers the Sunwolves.

Until the 10-tries-to-one triumph at GIO Stadium on Saturday night, the Canberra-based outfit hadn’t earned a bonus point since their round-one demolition of the Hurricanes.

The victory puts them equal on points (34) with the NSW Waratahs, who beat the Chiefs 45-25 on Friday night, but ahead on the ladder with eight wins to their rivals’ seven.

It was the most points they’ve scored in a game since 2004, when they beat the Lions 68-28.

There were eight try scorers, with Wallabies captain Stephen Moore nabbing a career-first double and Nigel Ah Wong scoring two.

Both sides were slow off the mark as they adjusted to the cold, but the Brumbies were quick to heat up – laying on four converted tries in just 20 minutes in front of a crowd of 10,479.

Wallabies flanker Scott Fardy opened the Brumbies’ account in the 12th minute, followed by Moore, Michael Dowsett and Ah Wong for a 28-0 lead at halftime.

While possession was fairly evenly split, Japan’s Sunwolves lacked any attacking spark and were one man short either side of the break after lock Hitoshi Ono was given a yellow card for a backwards headbutt on Rory Arnold.

Moore scored his second try just a few minutes into the half before getting an early mark for the Wallabies camp, which starts on the Sunshine Coast on Sunday.

Fullback Aidan Toua, Jordan Jackson-Hope, in-form James Dargaville and Lausii Taliauli crossed over soon after. It was Jackson-Hope’s first in Super Rugby.

Dargaville was impressive with 11 runs for 180m, while Ah Wong was a standout on the wing and Toua had a hand in a couple of tries.

They couldn’t keep a clean sheet, though, with the competition’s leading tryscorer, Akihito Yamada, getting the Sunwolves’ only five-pointer in the 67th minute.

Ah Wong capped the night with his second after the fulltime siren.

Following the Test window, the Brumbies face the Queensland Reds at home on July 1, followed by the Blues and Western Force.

MORE TO COME

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