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Steve Borthwick suffers second major injury blow as England squad updated
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Rob Penney on Chay Fihaki's 'best in the world' skillset
By Henry Lee
You could forgive Crusaders head coach Rob Penney for feeling relieved with his side’s victory over last year’s runners-up, the Chiefs, but the result isn’t the only thing the 64-year-old is pleased about.
The 2025 Super Rugby Pacific champions bounced back from their 0-2 start to the campaign with a 43-33 win in Hamilton on Saturday evening, where a number of experienced All Blacks stepped up.
George Bell, Will Jordan, Noah Hotham, Tamaiti Williams and Fletcher Newell all played their part in the come-from-behind victory away from home, but it was a non-capped outside back who has grabbed some of the headlines.
Crusaders utility-back Chay Fihaki has long been talked about as a possible option in the future for higher honours, after being called into the All Blacks environment briefly under former head coach Scott Robertson.
Fihaki has made 48 appearances for the red-and-blacks in over five years at the Christchurch-based Super Rugby Pacific franchise, and has become one of the most highly-rated aerial specialists this country has to offer.
Penney, who is in his third year of coaching both Fihaki and the Crusaders, explained on Millsy & Guy on Sport Nation NZ that any team that wants to use a kicking strategy should look at Fihaki’s skillset.
“I think any team that wants to utilize that as a an attacking tactic, would love to have Chay in their mitts, to be able to pull that out of the repertoire, because he’s pretty special,” Penney said.
When asked about whether his specific skillset could push him towards an All Blacks selection, Penney said that his capabilities in his area of expertise is “probably the best in the world”.
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“Well, without doubt, the game is critical that you have triple threats, and Chay’s a triple threat with his speed, his handling and kicking skills, but he’s got the fourth one, which is just world class and probably the best in the world at receiving those high kicks and regaining possession.
“His skill set and his dexterity around that stuff it’s not unique, but it’s right at the top edge of anyone that’s got capabilities in that area.”
The Crusaders have long prided themselves on their execution at set-piece time, with Saturday night’s 2025 grand final rematch no different, as Penney’s forward pack rolled their sleeves up.
Penney said he knew the game against the Chiefs would be a physical battle up front, but he was happy with the resilience his side showed alongside some class at scrum time.
“Yeah, we’re blessed with the talent we’ve got. We thought that it would be a good battle up front, as it always is,” Penney told Sport Nation NZ.
“For the Chiefs, they put some water over us at a couple of breakdowns, but, and they took a couple of lineups off us, but we rallied really well and we showed some resilience.
“We’ve got a pretty young second row, and teams are trying to put a bit of pressure on but they’re getting better and better every week, and they’ve got great talent.
“Our Scrum is a real weapon for us, and that proves, once again, a vital piece of our weaponry in the weekend and our backs complemented it beautifully.”
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