Hurricanes player ratings vs Chiefs | Super Rugby Pacific
The Chiefs travelled to Wellington to take on the Hurricanes, looking to bounce back from a loss at home against the Crusaders. The home side were hoping to also bounce back after being the first New Zealand side to lose to Moana Pasifika.
The Hurricanes brought intense line speed early which paid dividends with a try just over 60 seconds into the game. They carried a 15-13 lead into half-time, but softened up and let the Chiefs take the lead in the second.
Giving away six penalties in a row midway through the second half, they fell behind 30-15 only to storm back to within one point.
Here’s how the Hurricanes players rated:
1. Pouri Rakete-Stones – 5/10
Held firm on the first Hurricanes scrum but began to wilt after that. Lost a penalty to Angus Ta’avao after too much pressure on the second. Some good tackles in close. Chiefs front row had the better of them in the first half. Off at half-time. Wasn’t really a memorable performance.
2. Asafo Aumua – 6.5
His early throwing was crisp, hitting his first five or so targets on time, but the lineout began to falter late in the half with an unplanned overthrow at a key time. Scrum started to fail under the pressure of the Chiefs’ All Blacks. Provided strong carries, as always, but was inaccurate at the breakdown, giving away a penalty in the first half for not supporting body weight. Conceded another penalty, stripping a tackled player inside his own 22 in the second half during a key period that the Hurricanes imploded in. Lifted his impact on defence late in the second half and finished with some strong carries. Got through a ton of work with 16 tackles. Overall a good performance, but discipline costly at times.
3. Tyrel Lomax – 5
Solid defence early on, driving the Chiefs back with some great hits. Was done by Josh Ioane when he tried to bring line speed in the lead-up to Anton Lienert-Brown’s try. Scrum struggled but he held his side well enough. Forced a key turnover 10 minutes into the second half with a counter ruck as the Chiefs looked to exit. Off in the 66th. Big minutes from the prop.
4. James Blackwell – 5
Good work rate but faded as the game went on. Did the dirty work around the rucks effectively enough in the first half. Wasn’t really the lineout option on the day with most balls going to Savea or Prinsep. Disciplined game but became ineffective as he tired out.
5. Scott Scrafton – 4
Good pressure from the big man off the defensive line early. Worked hard to get up in Chiefs’ faces but didn’t have the same impact early in the second half despite going off in the 48th minute.
6. Reed Prinsep – 3
Was the Hurricanes’ second lineout option. Was rather quiet, handling clean out work and carried a few times. Got burned by Pita Gus Sowakula after a slow break from the scrum which led to the Chiefs finally taking the lead. Just didn’t have much impact at all and you have to think the Hurricanes need to try a new 6.
7. Du’Plessis Kirifi – 5
Really led from the front on defence with great line speed early. Won a holding on penalty midway through the first half. Looked promising with ball in hand multiple times on the right hand side. Applied pressure at many Chiefs breakdowns but gave away a penalty right on half-time to allow the Chiefs three points and close the gap to two. Got stripped in the tackle at a crucial moment just three minutes from the end, when the Hurricanes were pressing. Another penalty 30 seconds from time for slowing the ball sealed the game for the Chiefs. While Kirifi’s effort was outstanding, it was his execution that proved costly and he has to be marked down for that. Not his day.
8. Ardie Savea (c) – 6
Was the Hurricanes’ primary lineout option instead of the locking pair. Quick hands down the blind from a scrum play helped set up the Hurricanes’ second try. Had a good penalty on his opposite number after Sowakula had turned the ball over on first phase. Overall, it was an uncharacteristic game from Savea, who didn’t have his usual high-level impact until the last 15 minutes. Took a quick tap and scored an incredible try with the Chiefs napping with seven minutes to go.
9. TJ Perenara – 8
Great intercept try less than 60 seconds into the game. The Hurricanes looked to bring intense line speed early and Perenara snatched one from a Josh Ioane pass going through the motions of their shape. Was very accurate through the first half, passing with good timing and precision to build the Hurricanes’ phase play. His control of the game began to fade as play got a bit sloppy late in first half. Provided some good tempo to lift the Canes’ attack after they lost the lead. Played his guts out in defence, trying to get the Hurricanes back in the game. Off in 70th. Best on the field for the ill-disciplined Canes.
10. Jackson Garden-Bachop – 5
Beautiful quick hands down the blindside to set-up the Hurricanes second try. Had some struggles building chemistry with Barrett with a key pass going to ground as the attack looked promising. Looked to play for more field position late in the first half as the Hurricanes got a little sloppy. One good long range kick put Chiefs wing Emoni Narawa under pressure. Other than that, had a quiet game overall as the Hurricanes’ discipline imploded in the second half.
11. Wes Goosen – 5
Had an unlucky bounce for a would-be try on a chip-and-chase break, but he scored moments later down the blindside with a walk-in after a five-metre scrum. Penalised for not rolling away from the breakdown directly in front of the posts after defending in the 10 channel. Some good moments in kick coverage and was typically reliable.
12. Jordie Barrett – 6.5
Had a nice offload to Goosen early on the left edge for a half chance. He kicked five from seven off the tee, missing a sideline conversion and a long penalty attempt in first half. Took plenty of carries but played a little indirectly at first receiver from set piece when he looked to free the backs. Missed a developing opportunity with Garden-Bachop running a play out the back during phase play in the first half. Defended well with a couple of dominant hits and got aggressive in the second half, seemingly out of frustration. Had one great ball-and-all tackle on Nanai-Seturo on a set piece scrum. Looks like the transition to 12 will take time as it wasn’t immediately clicking.
13. Billy Proctor – 4
Some understated involvements in defence and at the ruck in the first half. Had a few first receiver touches during phase play. However, took a bad angle in the lead-up to the Chiefs’ second try, allowing Quinn Tupaea to make the initial break that was finished by Kaylum Boshier. His best play was a nice pullback pass on the set piece play leading to the Savea try. Off in 70th. He is just not the kind of strike centre the Hurricanes are used to having.
14. Julian Savea – 6
Reliable in the first half. Had some good carries against the grain and had to jam in a lot and recovered well when needed. In the second half, he finished his only opportunity by crashing over in the corner.
15. Ruben Love – 5
Looked dangerous on his first kick return and always looked promising taking when on the line. Ran incisive lines during set pieces. Set up a nice try to Julian Savea in the 67th minute with good injection into the line to give the Canes some hope. His running game was fantastic but was let down by his ball handling at the back. Wasn’t tested enough by the Chiefs under the high ball as it proved to be his kryptonite. Dropped his first one under pressure, losing sight of the ball in the sun. Had a great aerial take to start the second half, but then lost the ball placing it back. Lost another one cold on the run after taking it cleanly for three kick return turnovers. Went for a wild cutout pass on a scrum play that was picked off by Emoni Narawa. His last-ditch defence unfortunately didn’t save the day against the odds like Barrett often pulls off. He will be better for the run at 15 and definitely has a lot to offer in attack, just didn’t provide the stability needed on the day.
Reserves
16. James O’Reilly – N/A
17. Xavier Numia – 4
On at halftime. Had a weak clean out that cost Hurricanes the ball and momentum. Just seemed to tire out early.
18. Tevita Mafileo – 6
On in 66th. Great carry first up. Forced a turnover on defence. Has a big frame and looks like an intriguing prospect.
19. Caleb Delany – 6
On in 48th. Very tidy performance. Did a lot of clean up work and made good decisions.
20. Devan Flanders – N/A
21. Jamie Booth – 4
Had a good kick-chase that resulted in a penalty won with his effort at the ruck. Oddly offered terribly slow service when the Hurricanes needed to lift. Always paused an extra half second before getting the ball out. Needs to fix.
22. Bailyn Sullivan – N/A
On in 70th. Had one strong carry.
23. Josh Moorby – N/A
On in 66th. Didn’t see much action.
Comments on RugbyPass
The Chiefs definitely didn’t win ugly. They had the superior scrum, a dominant lineout, and their defence was excellent once the Waratahs scored their two tries (thanks to some lucky refereeing calls mind you). They put pressure on the Waratahs lineout throughout the game, and the mind boggles as to why the referee did not award a yellow card or a penalty try against the Waratahs for repeated scrum infringements on their own try line before Narawa’s first try. And the Chiefs were slick with their passing and running angles on attack. It was a dominant performance all round, even with many questionable refereeing decisions.
1 Go to commentsWasnt late. Ref 2 assistants andTMO all saw it so who are you to say it was?
3 Go to commentsAre the Brumbies playing the Blues twice in a row?
3 Go to commentsBig difference from the Saders. Forwards really muscled up and laid a solid platform. Scooter brought some steel and I liked the loosie combination. Newell has been rather disappointing this season but stepped up big time - happy also to see Franks dot down. He should do that more often! Reihana had a good game and there seems to be more flair and invention with him in the saddle. McNicoll plays well from the back and is reliable plus inventive when he joins the line. Keep it up chaps!
3 Go to comments🤦♂️🤣 who cares who’s the best . All I know is the All Blacks have the star coach but have few star players now …
30 Go to commentsJe suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to commentsAn on field red (aka a full red) in SRP must surely carry a bigger suspension than a red card given by the bunker as that carries a 20 minute team punishment. Had Damon Murphy abdicated his responsibility as a ref and issued both Drua players a yellow, which would have been upgraded to a 20 minute red by the bunker, that would have killed Australia and New Zealand’s push for the 20 minute red to be trialled globally from July this year.
11 Go to commentsEver so often you all post a Danny Care story that isn’t the announcement that he has finally re-signed for one more, victory tour season at Quins and I’m just like, “well you fooled me again!” My absolute favorite player ever, we need to make his final year at the Stoop (and Twickers) official already. I know he supposedly snubbed France but I won’t feel better until he signs.
1 Go to commentslate hit what late hit it wasn’t at all late and can clearly see he was committed before the tackle
3 Go to commentsChristian Lio -Willies 2 try perfomance was a standout. As was captain Scott Barrett. Up front was where the boys won it.They are a great team and players. Fantastic Crusaders , you can keep going.
3 Go to commentsI don't know how the locals feel about that? I guess if you call yourselves the Worcester Wasps that might be appease. But really we need more teams in the Premiership in my view so they are not padding it out as they are at the moment. It might curtail so many players going abroad as well
5 Go to commentsNZ 😭😭😭is certainly rivaling England for best whingers cup!😭😭😭 !!!
30 Go to commentsYup. New Zealand won 3 out of 10 world cups played. SA 4 out of 8 attempts 30 Vs 50 per cent.🤔🤔
30 Go to commentsShould've done this years ago. Change Saturday kick off times to around 11am. Up and off and back home before 3pm, limit travel time too. Allows players to actually do something else with their Saturday that's family oriented or being rugby fans they could ‘watch’ pro rugby. Increases crowds etc. How can anyone that enjoys grassroots and pro rugby have to choose between the two on Saturdays?
9 Go to commentsI bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to commentsBen Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
30 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
9 Go to commentsPick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to comments