Chiefs vs Highlanders takes: The Lucas Casey game, Tangitau goes down

The Highlanders were in desperate need of a result in Hamilton on Friday night, and it was one of the two Super Rugby teams with nine wins from 11 games who would join them in deciding their fate.

The Chiefs took care of business in the end, claiming their 250th win in Super Rugby and officially cementing their place in the 2026 playoffs. The Highlanders will need other results to go their way if they are to avoid elimination from the knockout stages.

The All Blacks head coach, Dave Rennie, was in the building for the occasion, joined by some assistant coaches, and he was sure to have been impressed by some of the performances on display.

Here are some takeaways from the match.

Fixture

Super Rugby Pacific

Chiefs

42 - 12

Full-time

Highlanders

All Stats and Data

About these Highlanders props

Ethan de Groot is in the form of his career, both in the scrum and around the field. In previous years, he’s looked like a one-man band in the front row, shouldering a huge load at scrum time and watching it crumble once his hour is done and the reserves take the field.

This year, though, Jamie Joseph has called in reinforcements. Angus Ta’avao, now 36 years young, is defying father time and playing some superb rugby since moving south from the Blues.

The combination of De Groot, Ta’avao, and the emerging star that is Jack Taylor has been putting the heat on scrums all season, with the big stat to be thrown around this week being that the Highlanders have won a baker’s dozen more scrum penalties in 2026 than any other team.

De Groot’s exploits don’t end there, though, with 113 tackles made and just nine missed. The latter stat is almost equalled by his dominant tackle count of seven. He’s one of the most efficient tacklers in the competition.

The big man appears to finally have the supporting cast to show off the extent of his talents, and those talents certainly are extensive. Ta’avao’s resurgence has been a godsend for the men from Dunedin, and in this form, you wouldn’t rule out a return in 2027.

Points Flow Chart

Chiefs win +30

Time in lead

55

Mins in lead

8

65%

% Of Game In Lead

9%

15%

Possession Last 10 min

85%

14

Points Last 10 min

0

The Lucas Casey game

Many of the sporting greats have a performance in the early stages of their professional careers that serves as a statement of what’s to come, announcing their place in the next generation of stars. This was that game for Lucas Casey.

Having shown he was ready for Super Rugby during an impressive campaign for Otago in the 2025 NPC season, Jamie Joseph wasted no time in locking in the services of the young Northlander. But even with his first Super Rugby contract secured, Casey was only meant to spend this season in the Highlanders’ wider training group (WTG).

Players involved in the WTGs are only eligible for gameday selection if there are injuries in the main squad. Hugh Renton being in the rehab group to start 2026 opened the door for Casey to start the first game of the season at No.8, and the 23-year-old stayed in that jersey for the following three games.

The opportunity hasn’t always been there for Casey, but even while competing in a superb young group of loose forwards, this week’s selection was his 10th of the season and seventh start.

Against the Chiefs, Casey opened the scoring in the 18th minute with a try that saw him take the ball from the back of a scrum and drag Josh Jacomb just shy of 10 metres to the try line. He led the game in carries (22), carry metres (117), defenders beaten (9) and tackles (18).

Caleb Tangitau goes down

One of the last players All Blacks fans would want to see collapse with a non-contact injury did just that on Friday night.

Caleb Tangitau made it through 80 minutes and 34 seconds of action before hitting the deck on his 14th carry of the night, with a left-foot goose step being the action that ended his evening.

Slow-motion replays showed the moment pain crossed the young winger’s face, all before he reached the Chiefs’ defensive line. He spilled the ball on the ground, where he remained until a medic cart took him from the field.

The emotions were raw for the 23-year-old, who hit the ground in frustration while wearing a grimace and keeping his leg still. Once on the cart, teammates embraced him, with Ethan de Groot wrapping an arm around and offering words of support.

Fans across the country will be anxious to hear any updates that may come in the coming days, with Tangitau’s form among the most exhilarating in Super Rugby, not just this season but also in 2025.

It was a groin injury that ended that 2025 Super Rugby season, removing the former All Blacks Sevens speedster from contention for higher honours. He returned to star during Auckland’s NPC campaign and scored in each of his appearances for the All Blacks XV during their European tour.

Another injury would be a cruel blow for one of rugby’s most promising young talents.

Kicking no longer on the menu

The Highlanders won the opening game of the 2026 season by defeating the defending champion Crusaders by two points in Dunedin. One of the big talking points to come from that game was the amount of kicking employed by both teams.

The Crusaders made 38 kicks, with a kick-to-pass ratio of 1:4.3, while the Highlanders went even further, making 44 kicks with a kick-to-pass ratio of 1:2.9. The game, generally, featured far fewer carries into contact than typical of a New Zealand derby.

In the 13 rounds since, the Highlanders have eased off the kick-heavy tactics, and Friday night in Hamilton was a far cry from opening night in that regard.

The visitors made just 28 kicks, with a kick-to-pass ratio of 1:9.3. They made nearly 60 more carries than they did on opening night, and more than twice as many passes (259 compared to 127).

The Highlanders remain second in the competition for the number of kicks from hand per game, but are backing their ball carrying far more than they did early in the season. The trend comes after an international season in which New Zealand’s ability under the high ball was heavily questioned, and there was much curiosity over whether Kiwi Super Rugby outfits would look to address that.