Hurricanes Poua stun Matatu, Blues edge Chiefs Manawa in Whangarei

Super Rugby Aupiki has dished up two dramatic encounters in round five of the 2026 competition, where the Hurricanes Poua have claimed their third straight win, and the Blues have inched closer to another final berth.

The Blues overcame a tough challenge from the winless Chiefs Manawa to take the Semenoff Stadium encounter 42-26.

The Poua’s victory at Fraser Park in Timaru was more dramatic, as a last-gasp Renee Holmes conversion sealed the deal over Matatu, 33-31.

After round five, Matatu still sit at the top of the table with 19 points, and has already confirmed a spot in the final in thirteen days’ time.

The Poua, who have found themselves one point off a final spot heading into the last round of the 2026 competition, have made an incredible turnaround, having not won a single game in the 2025 season.

The Wellington Aupiki franchise is on a three-game winning streak and takes on bottom-placed Chiefs Manawa this weekend in Upper Hutt.

The Friday evening Whangarei clash started with a try in the sixth minute to Maama Vaipulu, before the Chiefs Manawa went down to 14 players.

Veisinia Mahutariki Fakalelu’s yellow card didn’t help the Chiefs Manawa get back into the game, as tries from Tara Turner and Danny-Elle Alefosio Fesolai piled on the points while the Chiefs prop was on the sideline.

Mia Anderson’s five-pointers on either side of Sylvia Brunt’s 33rd-minute try kept the scoreline within three scoring plays, but the Blues were in control heading into the halftime oranges.

Chiefs Manawa replacement Shyrah Tuliau-Tua’a had an eventful second half, scoring a double and spending ten minutes on the sideline, which, ultimately, helped the Blues secure victory through Amarante Sititi.

Matatu’s last-minute defeat to the Hurricanes Poua couldn’t have got off to a better start, with Alena Saili, Pip Love, and Kaipo Olsen-Baker all crossing for a try in the first half.

Maia Joseph converted two of the three five-pointers before Black Ferns fullback Holmes, and Neve Anglesey hit back for Poua prior to halftime.

Both teams traded tries, but it was Fia Laikong’s yellow card in the 52nd minute that made many believe the game could be in Matatu’s corner.

Iritana Hohaia scored against the run of play when the Poua had 14 players, before Maia Davis reclaimed the lead with eight minutes to play.

But, in the final stages, Angel Mulu managed to power through a number of last-ditch Matatu defenders to score close to the posts, with Holmes slotting the conversion to clinch a famous victory in Timaru.

“There’s been a lot of hype around us this week and a lot of talk about us not having a lot of Black Ferns and being the leftovers of Aotearoa, but we’ve just shown we’re the girls that do the unseen work and we can go the whole 80. We might not be a big team of heroes, but we’re a great team,” Hurricanes Poua co-captain Te Rauoriwa Gapper said on Sky Sport post-match.