Super Rugby Aotearoa: Nehe Milner-Skudder misses out on Highlanders side for Crusaders derby
The Highlanders have named a settled team to face off against the Crusaders on Sunday, making just one change to their starting side.
Head coach Aaron Mauger has brought electric young wing Jona Nareki onto the left wing in place of fellow youngster Scott Gregory, who drops out of the match day squad entirely.
There are an additional three changes in the reserves, with veteran loosehead prop Daniel Lienert-Brown coming into the No. 17 jersey in place of rookie Southland front rower Ethan de Groot.
Mauger has opted to go for a six/two split on the bench, naming utility back Ngane Punivai at No. 22 in place of Bryn Gatland, while versatile loose forward Teariki Ben-Nicholas vacates the No. 23 spot last donned by Nareki.
There remains no room for star recruit Nehe Milner-Skudder, whose wait for a franchise debut goes on as he continues to work his way back into contact training from a troublesome shoulder injury.
The returns of Lienert-Brown (tooth surgery) and Punivai (concussion) from injury, though, are timely for the Highlanders, who have admitted throughout the week that they didn’t front up in last Sunday’s 32-21 defeat to the Blues.
That result leaves them out of contention for the Super Rugby Aotearoa title, but they could yet play a significant role in deciding the eventual champion of the New Zealand competition.
A victory for the Highlanders over the Crusaders would keep the Blues and Hurricanes – provided they beat the Chiefs on Saturday – in the hunt for the league crown.
That would pave the way for a blockbuster final round of action next weekend when the Highlanders face the Hurricanes on the Saturday before the Blues host the Crusaders in a top-of-the-table encounter.
Mauger isn’t looking that far ahead, though, and is only focused on rectifying the performance that his side produced against the Blues.
“I didn’t feel we did ourselves justice last week as we allowed the Blues to dominate us early and rack up some points,” he said in a statement.
“We were better in the back half, but it was too late. Playing the Crusaders, we know we will have to be tuned in from the very start but it’s another great opportunity for our guys to prove themselves against the competition leaders.”
Highlanders team to play Crusaders:
1. Ayden Johnstone
2. Ash Dixon (cc)
3. Jeff Thwaites
4. Pari Pari Parkinson
5. Jack Whetton
6. Shannon Frizell
7. Dillon Hunt
8. Marino Mikaele-Tu’u
9. Aaron Smith (cc)
10. Josh Ioane
11. Jona Nareki
12. Patelesio Tomkinson
13. Michael Collins
14. Josh McKay
15. Mitch Hunt
Reserves
16. Liam Coltman
17. Daniel Lienert-Brown
18. Siate Tokolahi
19. Manaaki Selby-Rickit
20. Jesse Parete
21. Folau Fakatava
22. Ngatungane Punivai
23. Teariki Ben-Nicholas
Comments on RugbyPass
We’re building a bridge but can't agree where the river is.
2 Go to commentsfirst no arms shoulder or helmet tackle into his rib cage is going to be so very painful even to watch. go back to RU mate.
1 Go to commentsBulls by 5. Plus another 50.
3 Go to commentsJohan Goosen avatar. Cute. Surely someone at RP knows how to do a google image search?
3 Go to commentsCan’t these games play a little earlier? Asking for a friend.
3 Go to commentsIt’s impressive that we can see huge stadiums with attendance in the 40 000 to 50 000 region. It shows how popular this competition is becoming. What is even more impressive is the massive growth in broadcast viewership. The URC is one of the two best leagues in the World, the other being the Top14.
7 Go to commentsChristie is not Sottish, like the majority of the Scotland team.
2 Go to commentsHold the phone, decline over-rated. Is it a one game, dead cat bounce or the real thing? Has the Penney dropped? Stay tuned.
45 Go to commentsTotally deserved win for the Crusaders Far smarter than the Chiefs who seem to be avoiding the basics when it matters Hotham showed them what was missing and Hannah seems a real find - a tad light but that can be fixed over time
8 Go to commentsGreat insight into the performance culture with Sarries and I predict Christie will be a fixture in the Scotland team now for some time to come. However, he is slightly missing his own point around Scotland “being soft” when he cites physicality examples in defence of that slight. The issue is much closer to the example he referenced around feeling off before a game but being told “it doesn’t matter, you can still play well” by Farrell. Until Scotland can get their psyche in that square, they will carry on folding under extreme pressure…
2 Go to comments> We are having to adapt, evolve and innovate more than when we were in Super Rugby where there was only really one style that everybody had to play to gain the most success. Have = able to? Interesting what that one style might be? I thought SA sides still had bad tours now, or at least bad schedule, months away? Those extra few hours flights have to be a killer though, no surprise to see their sides doing so badly at the start of the season each year. I wouldn’t enjoy that unfairness as a supporter.
7 Go to commentsThe problem for NZ, and Aus, is they ripped up the SR model and lost a massive chunk of revenue that hasn’t been replaced. Don’t forget SA clubs went North because they were left with no choice, Argy unceremoniously binned and Japan cast adrift. Now SR wasn’t perfect, far from it, but they’ve jumped into something without an effective plan, so far, to replace what they’ve lost. The biggest revenue potential now lies in Japan but it won’t be easy or quick to unlock, they are incredibly insular in culture as a nation. In the meantime, there is a serious time bomb sitting under SH rugby and if it happens then the current financial challenges will look like a picnic. IF the Boks follow their provincial teams and head north then it’s revenue meltdown. Not guaranteed to happen but the status quo is a very odd hybrid, with the Boks pointing one way and the clubs pointing the other way. And for as long as that remains then the threat is real.
45 Go to commentsI think Etene has had some good tuition, likely while at the Warriors to be a professional that helped his rugby jump, but he was certainly thrown in the deep end way too early. Should have arguably 20 less SR caps, and therefor a way better record that he does at his age, but his development would have been fast tracked by the need to satiate his signing away from league. Again, credit to him and others that he has done it so well. Easy to fall over under that pressure in the big leagues like that but he kept at it when I myself wasn’t sure he was good enough.
1 Go to commentsAwesome story. I wonder what a bigger American (SA) scene might have mean for Brex.
1 Go to comments“Johnny McNicholl and the Crusaders” save a Penney. Who has been in camp this week and showed them how to play?
8 Go to commentsSo, reports of the Crusaders’ demise / terminal decline are perhaps just - slightly - premature/exaggerated…? 🤔 Will we see a deep-dive into that by the estimable Rugbypass scribes, and maybe one or two mea culpas? Thought not.
8 Go to comments1. The Chiefs are rudderless without DMac, which enhances his AB chances 2. Chiefs pack are powderpuffs. The hard men arent there anymore 3. They had their golden title chance last yr and wont threaten this yr. Gone in second round of playoffs.
8 Go to commentsHonestly, why did you have to publish such a foolish article the day they play us? 😂
45 Go to comments> They are not standalone entities. They are linked to an amateur association which holds the FFR licence that allows the professional side to compete in the league. That’s a great rule. This looks like the chicken or egg professional scenario. How long is it going to be before the club can break even (if that is even a thing in French rugby)? If the locals aren’t into well it would be good to se them drop to amateur level (is it that far?). Hope they can reset from this level and be more practical, there will be a time when they can rebuild (if France has there setup right).
1 Go to commentsWhat about changing the ball? To something heavier and more pointed that bounces unpredictably. Not this almost round football used these days.
35 Go to comments