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Chiefs player ratings vs Brumbies | Super Rugby Trans-Tasman
The Chiefs convincingly beat the Brumbies 40-19 in their round two match of Super Rugby Trans-Tasman. The home team relied on their senior players; Jacobson, McKenzie, Boshier, Lienert-Brown and Ross all led from the front. The scrum was particularly potent against a scrum that was propped by two Wallabies.
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The loss of Vaa’i in the first half will be a concern for the Chiefs, with only one target over 191cm after the first half hour, the line out wasn’t great.
Here’re the Chiefs’ ratings.
1. Aidan Ross – 8
Good scrummaging against an experienced test player. He’s had a tough 3 years since Angus Ta’avao landed on him and broke his ankle but he’s underlined to the All Black selectors that this year he deserves a black jersey. Off at 58.
2. Samisoni Taukei’aho – 6.5
Led the attack with some very impressive runs early. Part of a super-scrum but the line out lurched with lack of tall men. Off at 67.
3. Sione Mafileo – 7
Won a penalty at 19 minutes to get one over Sio, and that was just the start as he got into gear. Had a nice series of one-two passes early in the second half before walking off for some pats on the broad back. Off at 43.
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4. Josh Lord – 7
Got wrong-footed by Tom Wright and couldn’t stop Ikitau who ran round him at 12 minutes for the try. The 20 year old is a starchy performer though and rolled his sleeves up and played with commitment for the rest of the game. To illustrate his engine, after the Lienert-Brown break in the 77th minute he made it to the break down to play halfback, then as play broke down he tracked back 70 metres to shut down Frost and deny a try.
5. Tupou Vaa’i – 6
Got a nasty poke in the eye in the first minute but his mates lense him a hand and the star pupil scored from a rolling maul. Good optics indeed …… sadly he was struggling with the eye, didn’t take a line out throw and left the field in the 34th minute. Still managed to read his texts on the bench in the second, that should be a fine!
6. Liam Messam – 6.5
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The old koro got stuck in and his physicality belied his 37 years. Loved to watch his pushing at scrum time behind Mafileo, even if his shoulder ended up on Sio more than once. High tackle in the 39th minute on Tom Wright. Off at 58.
7. Lachlan Boshier – 7.5
Wasn’t a show-pony effort, just worked hard to lead the defence. 12 tackles in first half, 14 in the second. We only saw him in the open a couple of times; a lovely assist in the 51st minute to Nankivell for his try. He showed Kata how to strip the ball in union in the 68th minute.
8. Luke Jacobson – 9
Cool hand Luke was everywhere, loves the flat ball and must be a big challenge to tackle at the advantage line. Nice skill to keep a dancing ball in control for his tries in the 21st and 31st minutes. When Vaa’i went off he stepped up as the major line out target as well.
The Chiefs have extended the New Zealand’s undefeated start to Super Rugby Trans-Tasman after they toppled the Brumbies 40-19 in Hamilton on Saturday. #SuperRugbyTT #CHIvBRU https://t.co/5GR478adzo
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) May 22, 2021
9. Brad Weber – 6
Muffed a certain try on the eve of halftime. Looked a little different tonight in the way he approached picking out runners and also kicking from the base of the ruck a few times for probing territory. Off at 64.
10.Damian McKenzie – 8
DMac seemed to be in a frisky mood dancing from first receiver a lot and always will run the ball back from punt collects. He also proved once again he’s brave on defence too, slowing down Stowers twice and a nifty turnover in a dark place that makes your girlfriend and Mum grimace. Threw himself at the line for his try in the 46th minute and his place kicking was better tonight.
11. Bailyn Sullivan – 6.5
Some very strong runs around 25 minutes that set up the Lowe disallowed try. As Kane Hames mentioned, he didn’t see the ball often but when he did he ran with determination. Off at 64.
12. Alex Nankivell – 7
Played with real purpose tonight, rewarded with a try at 50 minutes. I did ask the question last week about the need for someone to step up for metres in the absence of Nani-Seturo and Nankivell answered the call. The crowd loved the thumping hit on Banks in the 77th minute.
13. Anton Lienert-Brown – 8.5
The Chiefs’ senior players stood up tonight and the centre was on fire. Nice outside break on Valetini in the 3rd minute, a turnover on Ikitau on 6. A little knock on at 26 minutes that put a spanner in the works of a Jonah Lowe try but got a reward after connecting with Trask, a try at 64 minutes. Cracked 134 metres, one of his best Super Rugby games.
14. Jonah Lowe – 6.5
There’s something honest and old school about Lowe, could be the headband, the work rate or just the way he tucks his head down and mows into the opposition. Denied a try in the 27th minute, good turnover early in the second half and sold interplay in the lead up to the McKenzie try. Off at 52.
15. Chase Tiatia – 6.5
He really is a freakish player, he seems to have another dimension of vision from most players. Maybe Kurtley Beale is a solid comparison? Couldn’t get his hands on the ball as much as he would have liked, but we saw his class down the left flank with a superb chip the led to ALB’s try.
The Blues have returned to the summit of the Super Rugby Trans-Tasman table after condemning the Waratahs to their 10th successive defeat on Saturday. #SuperRugbyTT #BLUvWAR https://t.co/2FP1HSzGTK
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) May 22, 2021
Reserves:
16. Bradley Slater- N/A
On at 67. Toiled hard.
17. Ollie Norris – 5
On at 58. Scrum continued to do well, didn’t appear with the ball in hand as much as usual.
18. Atu Moli – 6.5
On at 43, kept the scrum on the ascendency, swum through the maul at 53 and loves the juddering tackle.
19. Zane Kapeli – 6
On at 34 minutes. At 188cm he’s not tall enough for a lock but proving he’s a team man he got stuck in, although couldn’t win a line out.
20. Pita Gus Sowakula- 5.5
On at 58. Got jiggy with his first run but knocked it on. Always relied on to run the ball out of tough spots.
21. Xavier Roe – 5.5
On at 64. Beautiful cover tackle on Wright at 71. Good tempo from the base.
22. Rameka Poihipi – N/A
On at 64. A good number of tackles.
23. Kaleb Trask – 6
On at 52. Nice link play picking up Tiatia’s chip and putting ALB away at 64. Looks good positionally and as a counterpoint for the running of McKenzie, isn’t scared to kick to space.
Comments on RugbyPass
Great piece Nick, plenty to chew on. Loved this ‘biases’ line from Geoff, shows he is a thinker - “If you asked me for a shortlist of coaches who appealed to my biases, he would be on it.” I think Schmidt is towing a similar line to Rennie in regards to OS players, he is publicly saying he prefers local talent, but almost certainly will be fighting to have the likes of skelton in the team. Interesting to hear the backroom on the rebels and what a cockup that is, just when you think RA admin has hit rock bottom it digs deeper. Other bit that caught my eye was his skills focus on things like passing from 7s at the base of the lineout, great little details. but also scary that a SR level 8 didn’t know how to operate within a lineout - telling!
20 Go to commentsThoroughly enjoyed this thanks Nick. ‘The lineout starts on the ground…’ wish I’d thought of that line when discussing Will’s place in the Wallabies.
20 Go to commentsShannon Frizell’s second year is optional is how I heard it. Given nothing has been confirmed yet it gets more and more likely he signs to return next year. Cant wait to see Finau doing more work on Internal players.
29 Go to commentsBlindside flankers should be hard hitting defenders, good lineout jumper with height, and a hard worker who hits and cleans rucks. If he can be a destructive ball carrier it’s a bonus but not a necessity. Samipeni Fineau and Cullen Grace are excellent at those core skills and my choice at blindside. Brad Shields is dismissed because he is 33 but not sure why that should be a consideration for this season. Shields too does these core roles well. Just don’t pick an 8 and shift him to 6 like the wingers on The Breakdown suggest, as if 6 and 8 are interchangeable. They are not. An 8 is first and foremost a dynamic ball carrier, not necessarily a destructive defender as a 6 should be. Devon Flanders and Akira Ioane are #8 s forced to play blindside because their teams have better options at 8 than them. Do not pick them at blindside
29 Go to commentsSaints obviously didn’t get the memo, or needed an ego boost?
1 Go to commentsReturning to the Chiefs would be another good change that could only put him into a better position to succeed in black
6 Go to commentsSimply outrageous and demonstrably false to say Finau’s tackle on Lynagh was “2 seconds late” In reality it was probably 0.5 seconds after he passed the ball. If you carry the ball at speed to within 5m of the defensive line you can expect to get tackled. Finau could have pulled out of it and not absolutely flattened him for sure, but there was going to be contact either way. He seems like a high risk selection at the moment, but there is no one else like him in NZ at the moment. His big tackles make the highlight reels but he is also a great athlete, very fast for such a big man, spent most of his days at lock so also very strong in the line out.
29 Go to commentsYes, Finau looks like the best option. Blackadder is not big enough for an international 6 - he should join the queue at 7. Frizzell had the power and heft and line-out height to play lock, so maybe that is where the ABs should be looking, not at a 7 who’s not big enough for 6, but at a lock who might have the agility to play 6, like Scott Barrett, or… Natai Ah Kuoi, who absolutely fits that bill, but seldom gets to play 6 because the Chiefs have so many loosies.
29 Go to commentsPaul Quinn was a National MP.
6 Go to commentsNo need to worry about losers’ mentality hysteria from Australia. Finau has all the attributes, I don't recall a high or no arms tackle from him, and his timing has been controlled very well since the round 3 Lynagh tackle. It's an easy decision for Razor, the only question is who should back him up from the bench. He can't be overworked like Squire was in his first full season.
29 Go to comments“Reds coach Les Kiss saying later: “I think every player has the right to feel safe.” Maybe Rugby is the wrong sport for people who want to feel safe..?
29 Go to commentsNot sure what the context was, but the highlights showed one scrum against Aussie where the baby Blacks were going backwards at a pace. The pack has been the issue since 2017, so they might be in for another reality check soon. This tournament should really have been two rounds, would have learned a lot more.
1 Go to commentsPeter Lakai has a ‘lot of size’? Since when? To Kirifi maybe. I think Laidlaw clearly saw he’s too small for 6 or 8, so plonked him at 7. Has potential to be Ardies understudy in black for 7.
6 Go to commentsDalton for skipper?
16 Go to commentsOh he's ‘Irish qualified’ isn't that convenient. If Ireland get any more Kiwis (and Aussie) in their backline they might need to run out in green and black kit soon. How is the supposed best rugby system in the world in need of trawling for journeyman Kiwi players?
2 Go to commentsCallum Grace is playing well now that he's finally back in his best position. But given it was Razor who somehow thought Grace was dynamic enough to be a No8 when he's clearly not, Im not sure he’d backtrack on that. Finau is risky with his style, and there's almost no point picking Blackadder when he can’t stay on the field more than five minutes.
29 Go to commentsThe team on paper has more supposed ‘stars’ than a lot of the sides they’re losing to. They’ve got the Razor-blues and aren't playing for Penney. He should jump before he's pushed.
1 Go to commentsProof. That if you lay dramatic instrumental hip hop music over a video of a skinny pale white kid running an unopposed zig zag on a training ground filled with rookies - it’ll look next-level epic!
13 Go to commentsIf they win the challenge Cup then it will have all been worth it. If they don’t, then maybe he should go. Lots of ppl seem to think very highly of him as a coach, but maybe he would be better working under someone. Any top sides looking for forwards coaches rn?
1 Go to commentsJason Ryan knows his craft as forwards coach and I'm sure he’ll hold sway with Scott Robertson of who he feels worthy of selection…his credentials validated when he put a 7xcaps between them front row...Ethan, Samisoni and Lomax on Ellis Park…Go the AB's…
29 Go to comments