Another Mad Max double vaults Waratahs to top of table
Darren Walton |
Elated coach Dan McKellar has been left shaking his head in awe after another breathtaking Max Jorgensen try vaulted the NSW Waratahs to the top of the Super Rugby Pacific table with a 36-13 victory over the Fijian Drua.
As he did last week in a big win over Queensland, Jorgensen lit up Allianz Stadium with a brilliant double and one special solo effort that turned the match the Waratahs’ way four minutes before halftime on Friday night.
With nothing on, flyhalf Lawson Creighton fired a triple cut-out pass to Jorgensen and watched the electrifying Wallabies winger do the rest.
With little room to move, the 21-year-old beat his Drua opposite Taniela Rakuro all ends up with a bamboozling sidestep before out-pacing the cover defence of fullback Ilaisa Droasese to touch down in the left corner.
“You just shake your head. Honestly, he’s beaten him in a phone booth,” McKellar said.
“There’s not many players that can score that try – on the planet – so, yeah, Maxi, it’s a great moment. He’s building the highlights reel quickly.
“I thought he did a lot of other good things well. I thought his work on our contestable kicking game to win us the ball back, that’s something we’ve spoken about.
“It was much better for him tonight.”
The Waratahs had been trailing 10-7 before Jorgensen’s intervention but were never headed again, leaving McKellar’s side top of the table following two bonus-point wins to open their 2026 campaign.
Jorgensen was controversially denied a second five-pointer three minutes later when the TMO ruled a forward pass in the lead-up to the winger racing 30 metres to seemingly score under the posts on the stroke of halftime.
But officials couldn’t deny Jorgensen a second try from, fittingly, the last play in his latest man-of-the-match performance.
He swooped on a well-placed grubber kick from Jack Debreczeni to dot down in the dying seconds, to the delight of the mostly pro-Waratahs crowd of 13,578.
“It’s pretty hard to beat the home crowd. Such a great, great support crew,” Jorgensen told Stan Sport.
“Look how many people show up here tonight. It’s amazing. The home crowd getting around you really does stuff for you and really pushes you through the full 80 (minutes).”
While Jorgensen again provided the highlights, it was the NSW forwards who paved the way for the victory.
No.8 Pete Samu and lock Clem Halaholo were all power, while replacement hooker Ioane Moananu also bagged a try-scoring double on debut for the Waratahs after defecting from the defending champion Crusaders.
Flanker Charlie Gamble and replacement lock Angus Blyth also crossed for the Tahs.
“I thought our forwards were outstanding tonight,” McKellar said.
“I couldn’t be happier with the piggies. They laid the platform – scrum, lineout, maul. Defensively, they had to do a lot of work because of some errors we made.
“But to come here and pick up five points and it looks like we’ve come away unscathed against a dangerous, dangerous team, so yeah, pleased.”
While NSW are flying early doors, the Drua are now none from two after suffering a rare home loss last week to Moana Pasifika to start the season.
AAP