Stephen Larkham’s candid ‘gone backwards’ take after Brumbies defeat

Coach Stephen Larkham admits the last couple of results suggest the ACT Brumbies have gone backwards in Super Rugby Pacific, falling to the Fijian Drua in a shock home defeat before losing to the ladder-leading Hurricanes 45-12 in Christchurch.

It’s been a turbulent season for the Brumbies, who kicked off the 2026 campaign with three wins on the bounce. The Brumbies claimed a relentless 32-point victory over the Western Force in round one, before back-to-back wins over New Zealand opposition.

Milestone man James Slipper got on the scoresheet as the Brumbies snapped a 26-year hoodoo against the Crusaders in Christchurch, before beating the Blues back at Canberra’s GIO Stadium the following weekend.

But the Brumbies dropped five of their next seven, starting with a remarkable comeback win for the Queensland Reds in the capital. Fehi Fineanganofo was the star of the show as the Hurricanes handed the Brumbies their latest defeat on Friday night, on the second day of Super Round.

Newcastle-bound Fineanganofo ran in four tries in a statement 33-point triumph at the all-new One NZ Stadium in Christchurch. Asked post-game about the trajectory of the Brumbies in recent weeks, Larkham acknowledged the team’s new combinations as they continue to build.

“Every team is getting better as the competition goes on, you sort of understand your strengths and weaknesses a little bit better. I think the results maybe would indicate, particularly the last two weeks, that we’ve gone backwards,” Larkham told reporters in Christchurch.

“We’ll go through the same process again. Just drown out the external noise and make sure that we’re focused internally this week.”

Fineanganofo opened the scoring with an effort just six minutes into this round 12 blockbuster, with the Brumbies chasing an unprecedented Kiwi sweep after previous wins over the Crusaders, Blues and Chiefs this season.

Cam Roigard and Ruben Love were heavily involved as the Hurricanes maintained control over this contest, while the Brumbies squandered some attacking opportunities. Four kicks were sent over the dead ball line, including two penalty kicks for touch.

Fineanganofo completed a hat-trick during the first half, as the Hurricanes took a 19-0 lead into the sheds. While the Brumbies improved during the second term, the Hurricanes outscored their opponents 26-12.

Josh Moorby (double), Fineanganofo and Jone Rova all got on the scoresheet for the Hurricanes, while David Feliuai and Corey Toole struck for the Brumbies. But inaccuracies n the kicking game and the set-piece was ultimately a talking point for the ACT outfit.

“What we’ve reviewed there is our kicking wasn’t where it needed to be, coming out of our end but also some kicks in their end. There were four kicks that went dead, two from penalty and two from out of hand,” Larkham explained.

“Thought they put a lot of pressure on the breakdown. I thought both teams put a lot of pressure on with their line speed and their breakdown pressure. We certainly had our chances in that first half inside their 22 with a couple of lineouts.

“It’s disappointing. We’ve come over here with pretty big expectations. We had good fan support, group come over here as well. The game blew out at the end.

“We had some chances in the second half as well. Toby’s [Macpherson] try from my perspective was touching a blade of grass and maybe that keeps it a little bit tighter and maybe the game’s a little bit different but we’re chasing the game at the back end there.

“It would have been a little bit different if the game was a little bit tighter, but they played well. I know they made some mistakes and we put a lot of pressure on them… but I felt that was a pretty tough competition out there on the field and probably the best team we’ve played this year.”

The Brumbies are still in the frame for a playoff spot, sitting in fifth place on the ladder ahead of another two matches in the 12^th round. But a tough run home makes this interesting, with three Australian derbies still to come.

Queensland will host the Brumbies next fixture on Saturday, May 2, before the Canberrans return home to take on the Western Force the following weekend. They round out the regular season away to the Waratahs and a home fixture against Moana Pasifika on May 30.

“We’ve played some good footy this year, there’s no doubt about that. There are some good combinations out there on the field and we’re just making a couple of mistakes that are hurting us,” he said.

“If we can get better accuracy at training then hopefully that transfers to the field. That would be the plan that we are good enough to beat New Zealand sides, Australian sides, which we’ve shown over the last two, three years, and we’ve kept our squad together.

“It’s not like we’ve got a new squad or anything like that. We’ve lost a couple of more experienced players but the fact that we’ve had some good performances this year will give us a lot of confidence going forward.”