Spiro Zavos evaluates the merits of 'winning ugly' ahead of the Waratahs' meeting with the Blues in The Sydney Morning Herald.
"When a rugby team bases its playing style on "winning ugly" it is not going to lift any trophies. The occasional ugly win, though, is necessary for even the best teams if they want to become the champions.
"At the weekend we saw a number of necessary winning-ugly results. France won the Six Nations with a nervous victory over a dogged England. The Bulls snatched their fifth victory for the season, despite being outscored two tries to one by the Hurricanes, by playing out time with a series of slow-plod flops, a form of visual torture that should be legislated out of rugby. The Stormers made hard work of the Cheetahs by kicking away most of their ball. And the Waratahs won against the Western Force without making a line break or showing any attacking ploys or skills.
"France's ugly win over England can be justified because it delivered the glittering prize of a title. The Bulls reversion to negative kicking tactics seemed designed to put pressure on the two rookie Hurricanes wingers. The Stormers have the strongest defence in the Super 14 and this is their main strength. They have conceded a miserable 59 points in six matches."
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