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Dane Coles and Ruben Love handed starts for Hurricanes
The Hurricanes have made seven personnel changes to their line-up for their upcoming clash with the Rebels, including handing starting berths to Dane Coles and Ruben Love.
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Coles missed the opening half of the season, only making his first appearance for the Hurricanes in their sizeable 67-5 win over the Fijian Drua earlier this month. After getting 25 minutes off the bench against the Drua, Coles was brought on shortly before halftime last weekend to help shore up the scrum against a destructive Waratahs pack and Saturday’s match now sees the 35-year-old earn his first start of the season in the No 2 jersey.
Love, meanwhile, shared flyhalf duties early in the season with Jackson Garden-Bachop and Aidan Morgan while also getting runs at fullback but a groin injury suffered in early April has kept the young utility back on the sidelines for the past five rounds of action. It’s in the No 15 jersey that Love will make his return this week, with 20-year-old Aidan Morgan holding his spot at first five-eighth.
In the front row, Coles and Tyrel Lomax are joined by Tevita Mafileo, with last week’s hooker Asafo Aumua dropping to the bench and Xavier Numia left out of the 23 altogether.
James Blackwell holds his spot in the No 4 jersey and will be joined by Isaia Walker-Leawere, who takes over from the young Justin Sangster.
All Black Ardie Savea gets a rest this week which means TK Howden shifts from the blindside flank to the back of the scrum. Blake Gibson will fill the No 6 jersey with Du’Plessis Kirifi retained at openside flanker.
TJ Perenara returns to the line-up after a week off and will combine with Morgan in the halves. Jordie Barrett gets another shot at second five but will partner Billy Proctor, with last week’s No 13 Bailyn Sullivan omitted from the team.
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Salesi Rayasi and Julian Savea hold their spots on the wings while Love takes over from Josh Moorby.
In the reserves, Aumua is joined by the returning Pouri Rakete-Stones and elder statesman Owen Franks as front row cover. Scott Scrafton makes a first appearance on the comeback from injury after last featuring at the beginning of April while Caleb Delany rounds out the forwards. Jamie Booth, Jackson Garden-Bachop and Wes Goosen round out the side.
The Hurricanes currently sit fifth on the overall ladder – three points behind the fourth-placed Chiefs. Two wins from their final two matches might be enough to jump the Hurricanes up a spot into a home quarter-final berth if the Chiefs fall at the last hurdle but forwards coach Chris Gibbes say the team are simply focussing on this weekend.
“[We’re going] game by game,” he said earlier this week. “We’re not getting ahead of ourselves at all.
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“We just want to make sure we put a performance in at Sky Stadium this weekend against the Rebels. It’s potentially our last home game and we want to make sure we go out with a real bang here.”
The Rebels, meanwhile, need two wins from their last two games to give them any chance of earning a spot in the knockout stages of the competition and came within a whisker of knocking off the Chiefs last weekend. Gibbes says the Hurricanes will try not to fall into the same trap as the Chiefs.
“I think they’re pretty physical, pretty direct,” Gibbes said of the Rebels. “They play pretty hard off 9 and they’ve got a big carry, clean game. Physically, they like to get in and impose themselves on you.
“I think the key thing for us is that if you’re inaccurate against teams like the Rebels and you let them have possession for long periods of time, they will hurt you. They’ve got some massive guys there and they’re utilising them from a tactical perspective pretty well. We’ve got to be able to stop that and it starts up front. I know I’m a forwards coach and we always say that stuff but that’s honestly where it is. If we can get parity and make sure our set-piece is really firing and we can get forward on defence, we’ll be able to put the pressure on them that we want to do.
“As you saw on the weekend against the Chiefs, if you allow them to play and you allow them to play their game, they can hurt you. We’ve just got to be smart and accurate and nail our moments.”
Hurricanes team to face the Rebels:
1. Tevita Mafileo
2. Dane Coles
3. Tyrel Lomax
4. James Blackwell
5. Isaia Walker-Leawere
6. Blake Gibson
7. Du’Plessis Kirifi
8. TK Howden
9. TJ Perenara (c)
10. Aidan Morgan
11. Salesi Rayasi
12. Jordie Barrett
13. Billy Proctor
14. Julian Savea
15. Ruben Love
REPLACEMENTS:
16. Asafo Aumua
17. Pouri Rakete-Stones
18. Owen Franks
19. Scott Scrafton
20. Caleb Delany
21. Jamie Booth
22. Jackson Garden-Bachop
23. Wes Goosen
Unavailable for selection: Devan Flanders, Brayden Iose, Reed Prinsep, Pepesana Patafilo, Tyler Laubscher, Ardie Savea, Josh Moorby, Dominic Bird, Justin Sangster
Comments on RugbyPass
It couldn’t have been Ryan Crotty. He wasn’t selected in either World Cup side - they chose Money Bill instead. And Money Bill only cared about himself, and that manager he had, not the team.
25 Go to commentsYawn 🥱 nobody would give a hoot about this new trophy. End of the day we just have to beat Ireland and NZ this year then they can finally shut up 🤐
13 Go to commentsTalking bout Ryan Crotty? Heard Crotty say in a interview once that SBW doesen't care about the team . He went on to say that whenever they lost a big game, SBW would be happy as if nothing happened, according to him someone who cares would look down.. Personally I think Crotty is in the wrong, not for feeling gutted but for expecting others 2 be like him… I have been a bad loser forever as it matters so much to me but good on you SBW for being able to see the bigger picture….
25 Go to commentsThis sounds like a WWE idea so Americans can also get excited about rugby, RUGBY NEEDS A INTERNATIONAL CALENDER .. The rugby Championship and Six Nations can be held at same time, top 3 of six nations and top 3 of Rugby championship (6 nations should include Georgia AND another qualifying country while Fiji, Japan and Samoa/Tonga qualifier should make out 6 Southern teams).. Scrap June internationals and year end tours. Have a Elite top six Cup and the Bottom 6 in a secondary comp….
13 Go to commentsThe rugby championship would be even stronger with Fiji in it… I know it doesen’t fit the long term plans of NZ or Aus but you are robbing a whole nation of being able to see their best players play for Fiji…. Every second player in NZ and AUS teams has Fijian surnames… shame on you!!! World rugby won’t step in either as France and England has now also joined in…. I guess where money is involved it will always be the poor countries missing out….
84 Go to commentsNo surprise there. How hard can it be to pick a ball off the ground and chuck it to a mate? 😂
2 Go to commentsSometimes people just like a moan mate!
1 Go to commentsexcellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
13 Go to comments9 Brumbies! What a joke! The best performing team in Oz! Ditch Skelton for Swain or Neville. Ryan Lonergan ahead of McDermott any day! Best selection bolter is Toole … amazing player
12 Go to commentsI like this, but ultimately rugby already has enough trophies. Trying to make more games “consequential" might prove to be a fools errand, although this is a less bad idea than some others. Minor quibble with the title of the article; it isn’t very meaningful to say the boks are the unofficial world champions when it would be functionally impossible for the Raeburn trophy not to be held by the world champions. There’s a period of a few months every 4 years when there is no “unofficial” world champion, and the Raeburn trophy is held by the actual world champions.
13 Go to commentsIts a great idea but one that I dont think will have a lot of traction. It will depend on the prestige that they each hold but if you can do that it would be great. When Japan beat the Boks (my team) I was absolutely devestated but I wont deny the great game they played that day. We were outclassed and it was one of the best games of rugby I have seen. Using an idea like this you might just give the the underdog teams more of an opportunity to beat the big teams and I can absolutely see it being a brilliant display of rugby. They beat us because they planned for that game. It was a great moment for Japan. This way we can remove the 4 year wait and give teams something to aim for outside of World Cup years.
13 Go to commentsHi, Dave here. Happy to answer questions 🥰
13 Go to commentsDon’t think that headline is accurate. It’s great to see Aus doing better but I’m not sure they’ve shown much threat to the top of the table. They shouldn’t be inflating wins against the lousy Highlanders and Crusaders either.
3 Go to commentsSuch a shame Roigard and Aumua picked up long term injuries, probably the two form players in the comp. Also, pretty sure Clarke Dermody isn’t their coach. Got it half right though.
3 Go to commentsOh the Aussie media, they never learn. At least Andrew Kellaway is like “Woah, yeah it’s great, but settle down there guys” having endured years of the Aussie media, fans, and often their players getting ahead of themselves only to fall flat on their faces. Have the “We'll win the Bledisloe for sure this year!” headlines started yet? It’s simple to see what’s going on. The Aussie teams are settled, they didn't lose any of their major players overseas. The Crusaders and Chiefs lost key experienced All Blacks, and Razor in the Crusaders case, and clearly neither are anywhere near as strong as last year (The Canes and Blues would probably be 3rd & 4th if they were). The Highlanders are annually average, even more so post-Aaron Smith and a big squad clean out. The two teams at the top? The two nz sides with largely the same settled roster as last year, except Ardie Savea for the Canes. They’ve both got far better coaches now too. If the Aussies are going to win the title, this is the year the kiwi sides will be weakest, so they better take their chance.
3 Go to commentsThe World Cup has to be the gold standard, line in the sand. 113 teams compete for what is the opportunity to make the pool stages, and then the knockout games for the trophy. The concept is sound. This must have been the rationale when the World Cup was created, surely? But I’m all for Looking forward and finding new ways for the SH to dominate the NH into the future. The autumn series needs a change up. Let’s start by having the NH teams come south every odd year for the Autumn/Spring series games?
13 Go to commentsWhat’ll happen when the AI models of the future go back in time and try to destroy the AI models of the past standing in their way of certain victory?
44 Go to commentsThanks, Nick. We (Seanny Maloney, Brett and I) just discussed Charlie as a potential Wallaby No 8, and wondered if he has truly realised how big he is in contact (and whether he can add 5 kg w/o slowing down). Your scouting report confirms our suspicions he has the materiel. No one knows if he has the mentality (as Johann van Graan said this week about CJ, Duane and Alfie B) to carry 10-15 times a game.
58 Go to commentsHe would be a great player for the Stormers, Dobbo should approach the guy.
3 Go to commentsGood article. A few years back when he was playing for the Cheetahs, he was a quiet standout for exactly the seasons stated here. I occasionally get to see his games in the UK, and he has become a more complete player and in many ways like an Irish player. His work ethic is so suitable to the Leinster game. I wonder if Rassie would have him listed somewhere.
3 Go to comments