Dunner Stunner: Desperate Chiefs hold resurgent Highlanders to scintillating draw in Dunedin
It’s no coincidence that New Zealand derbies played under the roof of Forsyth Barr Stadium are often the most brutal, compelling and exciting fixtures to watch in Super Rugby.
That was certainly the case again on Saturday night, as the Chiefs held the Highlanders to a 31-31 draw in an enthralling encounter in Dunedin.
It’s a result that not only stunts the Highlanders’ mid-season comeback following a five-match winless run, but it also may just provide some hope for the Chiefs, whose campaign was on life support as they headed into this clash, languishing in 14th spot overall.
The derby quickly burst into life in the third minute thanks to a piercing run through the Chiefs’ defensive line by second-five Tei Walden.
His hard work was seemingly undone though, thanks to a shoddy offload by midfield partner Rob Thompson, which allowed Anton Lienert-Brown to hack the ball downfield along the turf in what looked to be a stunning 60 metre solo effort.
However, a brief check with the TMO showed that the All Blacks midfielder had swatted the ball free of Thompson’s grasp, initiating the knock on himself.
The Highlanders swiftly made the 24-year-old pay for his error just moments after the ensuing scrum on the Chiefs’ 10 metre mark.
A penalty from the ensuing scrum allowed Josh Ioane to put the Chiefs under pressure via his touch-finding boot, and he fully capitalised on the opportunity by drawing in and skinning McKenzie and Tumua Manu with some quality ball-playing from a close range lineout.
He converted his own try, but that didn’t stop the Chiefs from waving the white flag early on.
A deft inside ball from Michael Allardice to the barnstorming Tyler Ardron just inside the Chiefs’ own half allowed the Canadian utility forward to tear away into enemy territory after his teammates steered their way out from deep inside their own 22.
From there, a wonderful pass out to livewire halfback Brad Weber was enough for him to scoot over the tryline from 30 metres out to level the scoreline after just nine minutes of play.
The opening quarter of helter-skelter football didn’t stop there.
Tom Franklin was held up over the line after a long passage of sustained pressure by the Highlanders, but another extended sequence of play saw the hosts cross the tryline again not long afterwards.
This time it was co-captain Ben Smith, who instigated the attack back on his own 10 metre mark about 15 phases beforehand, that crashed over from the base of a ruck to score near the posts, putting a big dent in the Chiefs’ spirits in doing so.
It was a sublime display of continuity and persistence, and one that portrayed the Highlanders’ ability to sustain prolonged onslaughts of attack against Kiwi rivals, balancing out the opportunistic tries they picked up against the Blues in Dunedin two weeks ago.
Injuries in the Chiefs’ forward pack to Allardice and Lachlan Boshier could have derailed the Chiefs’ plans for a first half fight back, but the pure strength and determination of blindside flanker Luke Jacobson enough to get the away side back within touching distance.
A superb offload from Lienert-Brown found the hands of Manu, who bolted deep into the Highlanders’ half, but after Etene Nanai-Seturo was mowed down by Ben Smith just metres shy of the host’s tryline, Jacobson broke through a flurry of tackle attempts to dot down in the corner.
While it was the Chiefs who ended the first half strongly, it was the Highlanders who hit back right from the start of the second half.
Parked up inside the opposition’s 22 for the first five minutes of the second stanza, a few set pieces were repelled by the men in white.
They couldn’t fight off the brilliant interlinking play of Aaron and Ben Smith off the back of a five metre scrum though, which was enough to send wing Matt Faddes flying over out wide for his second try of the season.
For the first time in the match, the Highlanders crossed over for back-to-back five-pointers, with openside flanker James Lentjes cashing in on the breathtaking line break made by Ioane and the wicked long range passing of Aaron Smith to score in the left-hand corner.
Ill-discipline cost the southerners not long after, with an Elliot Dixon infringement at the breakdown laying the platform for the Chiefs to strike from a lineout 20 metres out, which they did.
Brilliant option-taking and interchanging of possession between All Blacks front rowers Nathan Harris and Angus Ta’avao silenced the 14,802-strong crowd, with the latter bringing the game back in the balance with a try.
Some sloppiness began to creep into the Highlanders’ performance as head coach Aaron Mauger started to ring the changes, and that much was evident as the Chiefs ran in their fourth try.
Spectacular offloading between Jacobson, Lienert-Brown and Solomon Alaimalo created a severe mismatch on the blindside from about 40 metres out, and Ardron had an easy time of running in a converted try, which cut the deficit to just four points.
However, as the intensity of the contest escalated inside the final 10 minutes, Ardron began to feel it, as he gave away a penalty with just a handful of minutes to play for incorrectly joining a ruck, which was duly punished by Ioane’s boot.
Some desperation from the re-start by Luke Jacobson kickstarted one final hurl at the Highlanders’ tryline, and the Chiefs were rewarded for their perseverance with a rare brace of tries for Ta’avao right under the sticks.
A quick conversion by McKenzie gave both sides enough time to clinch a winning score with the score locked up at 31-all, but despite a lightning breakaway from replacement outside back Josh McKay, a miscued pass by Tevita Li to the supporting Jackson Hemopo brought the match to an end as the ball found the sideline.
The rapid encounter didn’t come without its casualties though, with Ben Smith coming from the field in obvious pain due to a hamstring strain sustained in a brutal collision with the ever-present Jacobson.
“He’s also got a laceration on his chin, so he’s just getting stitched up at the moment,” a disappointed Mauger told RugbyPass.
“We’ll know a bit more in the next couple of days.”
While it is unknown how significant the injury will be for both the Highlanders and the All Blacks, Mauger confirmed the availability of loose forward Liam Squire, who is yet to feature this year due to long-term knee and hip issues, for next week’s match against the Jaguares.
Chiefs head coach Colin Cooper was much more satisfied with his side’s come-from-behind draw, reserving special praise for Jacobson’s efforts.
“He’s outstanding, isn’t he?” he said post-match.
“He just typifies the hard work, and obviously his leadership is going to come. He’s got a big future as a Chief, and higher up.”
The result the Highlanders in fifth-place heading into their Jaguares clash, but could be overtaken by any one of the Brumbies, Blues, Waratahs, Stormers, Jaguares and/or Bulls this weekend, while the Chiefs remain in second-last place with 19 points.
In other news:
Comments on RugbyPass
Super rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
8 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
9 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
8 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
22 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
9 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
14 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
14 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
14 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
5 Go to commentsHe seems to have the same aura as Marcus Smith - by which I mean he’s consistently judged as if he’s several years younger than he actually is. Mngomezulu has played 24 times for the Stormers. When Pollard was his age he had played 24 times for South Africa! He has more time to develop, but he has also had time to do some developing already, and he hasn’t demonstrated nearly as much talent in that time as one would expect. If he is a generational talent, then it must be a pretty poor generation.
6 Go to commentsThe greatest Springbok coach of all time is entirely on the money. Rassie and Jacques have given the south african public a great few years, but the success of the springbok selection policy will need to be judged in light of what comes next. The poor condition that the provincial system is currently in doesn’t bode well for the next few years of international rugby, and the insane 2026 schedule that the Boks have lined up could also really harm both provincial and international consistency.
22 Go to commentsJake White is a brilliant coach and a master in the press. This is another masterclass in media relations and PR but its also a very narrow view with arguments that dont always hold water. White wants his team to win, he wants the best players in SA and wants his team competitive. You however have to face up to the reality of a poor exchange rate and big clubs with big budgets. SA Rugby cant compete and unless it can find more money SA players will keep leaving regardless of Springbok eligibility and this happened in 2015 - 2017. Also rugby is not cricket. Cricket has 3 formats and T20 cricket is where the money is at. When it comes to club vs country the IPL is king but that wont happen because the international calendar does not clash with the club calendar in rugby. So the argument about rugby going down the same path as cricket is really a non-starter
22 Go to commentsNZ rugby seem not to have learnt anything from professional rugby. Super rugby was dying and SA left before they died with the competition. SA rugby did a u turn on their approach to international players playing overseas and such players are now selected for Bok teams. As much as each country would love to retain their players playing in local competitions, this is the way the world is evolving my friends. Move with it or stay 20 years behind the times. One more thing. NZ rugby hierarchy think they are the big cheese. Take a more humble approach guys. You do not seem to have your players best interests at heart.
8 Go to comments