Hill excels as Lions fall
Western Force belatedly found their scoring touch to inflict a 12th successive Super 14 defeat on the Lions with a 23-12 victory.
Last Updated: 01/05/10 7:16pm
Western Force belatedly found their scoring touch to inflict a 12th successive Super 14 defeat on the Lions with a 33-12 victory at Coca-Cola Park.
David Hill and Herkie Kruger traded four penalties before Scott Staniforth crossed for the Perth-based side late in the first half, and further scores from Hill and Bartholomeusz after the break clinched the win.
Hill kicked two penalties in the first three minutes and after he and Kruger traded kicks Brett Sheehan missed a long-range effort to send the Force into a bigger lead.
Kruger eventually levelled the scores at 12-12 but when Lions' Wikus van Heerden was sin-binned five minutes before the break, the visitors took full advantage.
A rare passage of attacking running saw Bartholomeusz make good ground and set up a move that ended with Staniforth touching down, Hill successfully adding the two.
The Lions returned after the interval with renewed heart and they twice surged towards the Western line, only to knock on as the chance presented itself.
The Force responded strongly though and after Nathan Sharpe was held up a yard short, prop Matt Dunning's good work came to nothing as a pass went to ground.
Staniforth was forced into touch as the visitors piled on the pressure but they broke through when Pek Cowan received good line-out ball and put Hill over, the stand-off converting his own score.
Force were cruising by that stage and with six minutes remaining Bartholomeusz finished off a straightforward move with Hill adding the conversion to take his personal tally to 23 points.
