South African recruit Sarel Pretorius made a strong debut for the Waratahs in a convincing 83-5 Super Rugby trial victory over Samoa A in Tamworth on Friday.

The halfback didn’t figure on the scoreboard but looked very sharp in a game used as an experiment by new Waratahs coach Michael Foley.

Pretorius was well-supported by Berrick Barnes as the Waratahs opened up a 38-5 lead by halftime when both teams made wholesale changes at Scully Park.

Tom Carter crossed twice on the back of strong drives, while Damien Fitzpatrick posted a second-half hat-trick.

All up the Waratahs scored 13 tries but will be concerned by a hamstring injury to winger Lachie Turner, which will be assessed on Saturday.

The Samoan selection was lacking star players on duty with their European clubs.

NSW coach Foley was pretty happy with the performance, particularly the discipline of both selections he used.

“It was very encouraging in terms of the discipline both (Waratahs) teams showed in difficult conditions,” he said of the rainy conditions.

“The two teams stuck to what we wanted to focus on.

“The ball movement early was good from us and the ability to adjust when the conditions changed was a tribute to the halves.

“That’s not to forget the forwards. They set a good platform.”