Waratahs put 18 years of failure behind them by putting Crusaders to the sword in a win for the ages

IT was a win the NSW Waratahs had dreamt of for almost two decades, a win that could finally bury the pain of 18 years of failure.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - AUGUST 02: The Waratahs celebrate a try by Adam Ashley-Cooper during the Super Rugby Grand Final match between the Waratahs and the Crusaders at ANZ Stadium on August 2, 2014 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Nolan/Getty Images)

IT was a win the NSW Waratahs had dreamt of for almost two decades, a win that could finally bury the pain of 18 years of failure.

As Bernard Foley’s last-minute penalty kick barely cleared the crossbar at ANZ Stadium, the ecstatic celebration of the team and its state kicked off in earnest. The record 61,823 crowd erupted and players embraced as they marked their moment in history — as the 2014 Super XV champions.

And the game itself was an epic to match the occasion, as the score see-sawed throughout the second half, before it settled finally at 33-32.

The Waratahs’ victory could also mark the start of a renaissance in Australian rugby, with officials hopeful of a strong showing against the All Blacks in the Bledisloe Cup game at the same ground in two weeks’ time and of gathering support for rugby union in Sydney’s west.

Players and staff enjoyed a low-key celebration with partners, family and friends at The Ivy nightclub in the city after the game.

Kurtley Beale (C) and his Waratahs teammates are over-joyed after beating the Crusaders.

There were none of the wild scenes or exaggerated emotion that could be expected from a side that had just made history, rather a relaxed and relieved atmosphere.

A steady stream of clubbers congratulated the players throughout the night as they walked into the upstairs party, while plenty of hugs and high-fives were dished out.

Israel Folau was among the first to leave and was up early for church yesterday.

Coach Michael Cheika — who took over 18 months ago after the Tahs were jeered by their own fans in 2012 when losing a record 12 out of 16 games — was touched by the level of support his team received.

NSW State of Origin coach Laurie Daley, Souths coach Michael Maguire, and the Roosters’ Trent Robinson and Anthony Minichiello were among several identities from the rival rugby code to offer congratulatory text messages to Cheika.

Social media also lit up with praise from around the world, as All Blacks and Springbok players put parochialism aside to tweet acknowledgement for Folau and co.

With the long awaited success of the Tahs, there is growing confidence that the Wallabies can end 11 years of Bledisloe pain to New Zealand, with the rugby community not showing this much excitement since the halcyon days of the 2003 Rugby World Cup.

The cash-strapped code had lost major ground to league and AFL in the past decade, but the Tahs’ exciting ball-in-hand style has won a new generation of supporters.

Half the general seating tickets sold in the first 48 hours for the final were outside rugby’s traditional heartland of Sydney’s east and north, signalling a rise of new fans in the growing west.

Added to this was major interest from corporates, who had begun to abandon the game in recent years due to lack of success and boring spectacles.

Crusaders No.8 Kieran Read is dejected at the end of the match amid a storm of blue ticker-tape.

“If there’s more people in NSW enjoying rugby then we’re going to be a lot better off, whether they’re kids or adults,” Cheika said.

“If they’re enjoying being a part of it — even though it can be a rollercoaster sometimes — the world’s going to be a better place.”

Match-winner Bernard Foley, who kicked a 44-metre penalty goal in the last minute to seal victory and end a 10-year losing streak to the Crusaders, said: “A few players came up and tried to say something, I tried to brush them off because you don’t want to get caught up in it.

“You want to go through your normal routine, your normal kick, and live with the consequences after.

“It was lucky it went over.

“You don’t deserve anything, but I thought we’d earned it. It’s a testament to the team for how hard they’ve worked for the last 18 months.”

Originally published as Waratahs put 18 years of failure behind them by putting Crusaders to the sword in a win for the ages