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Super Rugby Aupiki final preview: 'We can one hundred percent win'
If triple Rugby World Cup-winning Black Fern Renee Woodman-Wickliffe takes the field in the Super Rugby Aupiki final for the Blues on Saturday at Eden Park, it will be her 100th first-class match and mean eight first-class centurions will collide – the most ever seen in New Zealand.
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Woodman-Wickliffe (46 Tests, 24 tries, 36 wins) was lured out of retirement after the 2022 Rugby World Cup to cover injuries for Bay of Plenty in the Farah Palmer Cup, and now the Blues.
Woodman-Wickliffe played for Chiefs Manawa in their 35-0 mauling of the Blues in the inaugural Aupiki decider in 2022.
Blues coach Willie Walker is a former Maori All Blacks fullback. Walker guided Auckland to a Farah Palmer Cup Premiership triumph in 2023.
“We’ve got a bunch of experienced heads in this squad, many of whom have finals experience. They’ll be having conversations with our younger players this week around what to expect on Saturday and how to deal with the heightened pressure of a final,” said Walker.
Because youth that could decide the contest and Blues fullback Patricia Maliepo and Chiefs Manawa loose forward Mia Anderson represent the best of the youth on display.
Maliepo is a key attacking weapon for Walker. The Black Fern, unshackled by the foot injury that hampered her most of 2023, has been defensively sound and made timely injections on attack ranking fifth in carries (61), sixth in meters gained (316), and second in offloads (9).
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The Blues have been unstoppable since losing to Chiefs Manawa (10-17) on March 9. Four consecutive wins have earned the Blues a right to hosting rights, something they did not have for five weeks until Manawa was upset by Matatu 22-20 last Saturday.
“We’ve been building each week and were unstoppable in some areas of the field. This is the last dance. The work we’ve put in will come out on the field,” Maliepo said.
“The Chiefs strength is their forwards. If they front up early and win set pieces that won’t stop them. If our forwards meet them early and give them a taste of what we’ve got, we can hurt them.”
That’s exactly what happened in the Blues 40-26 win over Manawa on March 30. The Chiefs’ usually precise and powerful lineout malfunctioned as the Blues matched up physically and caught fire in a devastating five-minute burst which saw three tries scored in five minutes.
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Anderson will be essential in shutting down the Blues. She has featured in every match this season and has experience winning a final. In 2021 Anderson played for Waikato in its 22-20 upset of Canterbury in the Farah Palmer Cup (FPC) final. Canterbury beat Waikato 8-7 in 2020, a final in which Anderson also featured.
“It’s going to be like that this weekend; super close, they are an amazing side. Everyone is going to have to be switched on for 80 minutes to get the job done,” Anderson said.
“We’re our own worst enemies at the moment. We can one hundred percent win this weekend. We’ve put ourselves under unnecessary pressure the last two weeks. We’ve flipped that and been really positive. We’ve been waiting for it all to come together.
“We have an exciting game plan which no one else is doing. It’s been a big learning curve. It’s such a weapon when it works. When it doesn’t it goes the other way.
“Most teams play a 1-3-3-1 pod setup. We’ve changed that up and designed it for our skills so we can express ourselves more. It’s about letting the ball do the work. They don’t just run it straight, they’re in motion. It’s hard to explain in words, a bit nerdy, I don’t want to give too much away but it’s like moving pieces on a chess board quickly.”
Anderson had never been used as a strike runner of lineouts. Black Ferns winger Ruby Tui has run for the most meters in Aupiki.
Andreson debuted for a revived Northland in the FPC in 2019. She was a student at Kerikeri High School. She migrated south to Hamilton to study Business and Sports Science at the University of Waikato.
She missed the 2023 decider Manawa lost to Matatu (33-31) due to maternity leave.
Key Points
Chiefs Manawa has the best record of any team in the competition. Including a 39-12 win over the Blues in an Aupiki polite at Eden Park in 2021 they have won 11 of 14 matches. The Blues have won 7 of 12 matches.
Chiefs Manawa won the 2022 decider 35-0 against the Blues. It was not an official final but the last match of the round-robin, which Manawa topped. Luka Connor, Ruby Tui, Hazel Tubic, Portia Woodman-Wickliffe, and Langi Veainu scored tries. Kelly Brazier slotted two conversions and two penalties.
Chiefs Manawa has 15 past or present Black Ferns, Blues 11.
The Blues have scored 31 tries and have had the most carries for the greatest gain.
Manawa have scored 30 tries but had 15 more clean breaks than the Blues with the least carries of any team in Aupiki.
World Rugby Player of the Year (2022) Ruahei Demant is playing second-five instead of her more customary position of first-five. Krysten Cottrell has worn the Blues Ten jersey. The former Black Ferns pivot has scored a competition-leading 45 points in six matches.
Black Ferns co-captain Kennedy Simon is the Chiefs’ top individual tackler with 82 in six matches. Maia Ross has 74 for the Blues.
Black Ferns winger Katelyn Vahaakolo (Blues) and Manawa hooker Luka Connor are the top try scorers with six. Connor has scored an Aupiki record 16 tries in 13 games.
Comments on RugbyPass
Grt bench player..keep him there..
3 Go to commentsA Springbok 2-0 win: haha told you we were champions now shut up An Irish 2-0 win: the referee was under orders from world rugby to cheat us but luckily we don’t care because this is part of Rassie’s grand world Cup plan.
107 Go to commentsI hope they didn’t pay Jones fee?
2 Go to commentsTo be fair, the teams he's had to put out are reminiscent of those available to Gatland during his horrible run at the Chiefs in late 2020. Anyway, he's only got a two year contract and Wellingtonian Tamati Ellison will be ready by then, as will a lot of talented youngsters (like the Chiefs Gatland blooded). The Crusaders are planning for the long term.
5 Go to commentsGreat to see more community spending leading to higher participation in the community. It's a long road but that's a good first step.
2 Go to commentsPoetic justice for trying to sell him to Australia as another kiwi saviour coach, not ! Deans was just as bad actually but McCaw and Carter covered up for him. That’s why they didn’t want him as All Black coach, even after Graeme Henry’s bumbling effort in 2007.
5 Go to commentsSACK HIM !
5 Go to commentsSafas are so triggered by Ireland. 3 consecutive losses, incl RWC. 8 losses out of last 12 Tests. Always excuses, of course, with Bok fans. Now Rassie with his “88%” nonsense, the Claytons Excuse is an embarrassment to Bok teams of the past when every test mattered. Their fickle mojo will be on edge for the Ireland tour. Have the referees been appointed yet ? They will need security. Have WR laid out strict guidelines for TMO’s and replays on the stadium screens ? Will the constant stoppages from Bok forwards for cramps and bootlaces be tolerated ? We’re not talking a dominant Springbok team here, they won the LOTTO Cup and they know it whether they admit it or not. The Disney doco has their fans positively fermenting internally, its going to be a nasty hangover if they get beaten on home soil. What will the excuses be then……
107 Go to commentsGreat role model.
2 Go to commentsOne significant tell, not a single Waratahs player stopped to whinge to the ref about Finau’s tackle. They got on with playing the game. Great tackle.
8 Go to commentsWouldn’t be a bad move if Ireland pulled into SA with a young side. Particularly in Pretoria. Invaluable experience getting thumped in the bosveld.
107 Go to commentsIreland. The Princess Diana of Rugby. I never cheered so much for a team as i did for the All Blacks in that QF.
107 Go to commentsWill be great to see the Leinster first XV back in action again after their cotton wool time…
1 Go to commentsLooked up Grant Constable on google and reply was doppelgänger for Ben Smith
107 Go to commentsIt is so good that we now all get excited and debate who is best and emotionally get involved. We all back our teams which is great. Up until about 15-20 years ago, NZ was basically on its own, and then Saffa, Aussie and sometimes French and English were there. We now have at least 5-6 really top sides and another 4 who keep improving. This is so healthy. So we should not resort to rubbish comments and unhealthy debate, but rather all be chuffed that the product we watch is not competitive, exciting and often uncertain. It would be so good if World Rugger could find a way to align the rules to professional players as well as spectators. Live rugby games are SO boring as there is SO much down time as we wait for refs and TMOs and whoever else to look at every small event going back endless phases with the hope of eventually find a minute infringement to then decide cancel what was a wonderful try. This is the ultimate cork back in the bottle moment and feels like every balloon is always being popped. Come on- we must be better with the rules.
107 Go to comments“upon leaving said establishment I tripped over a stool knocking some bottles into the air and as I fell I accidently dislodged a police officer’s teaser who was passing by on an unrelated matter there by landing on said taser which caused it to discharge 50,000 watts into me. Out of shock I shouted Ireland are going to win the world cup. Upon waking up I apologised for the distress caused by my Ireland comment. The matter is closed. If you wish to pursue this matter may I remind you what I told Wayne Barnes when he sent me off. I AM A BIG ASS MAN”. Or was it “I AM A BIG ASS, MAN” or was it “I AM A BIG ASSMAN”?
2 Go to commentsThe only championship the Boks hold are: Great value for the incompetence of referees during the RWC Moaning endlessly and champions of spewing utterly ignorant 💩 at all times. Displaying the dangers of a third world education End of.
107 Go to commentsSouth Africa and Rassie do a phenomenal job of treating the 4 years in between World Cups as nothing more than a training exercise to build squad depth. The Six Nations money that keeps Irish rugby afloat is unfortunately too important to allow the same approach, and basic population size means we'll never get close to matching the depth of South Africa, England and France. That being said, Irish rugby is in a relatively good place and slowly improving inch by inch. If the other three provinces can pull the finger out and actually develop some players it'd be even better.
107 Go to commentsGood on Clarke for taking on the criticism and addressing his deficiencies, principally his laziness.
3 Go to comments“It is the people’s favourite against the actual favourite. It is the people’s champions against the actual champions. I’m joking, but it’s going to be a fantastic series.” Why did Darcy make that joke knowing it would be used as click bait? Why did RP headline it as a serious comment? Anyway, the tired comment isn’t very astute. SA players may have played more games etc. Darcy over estimated as a pundit.
107 Go to comments