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Wallabies great tips upset ahead of pivotal Barrett and McKenzie clash

Beauden Barrett of New Zealand looks on with team mate Damian McKenzie during the Rugby World Cup France 2023 match between New Zealand and Uruguay at Parc Olympique on October 5, 2023 in Lyon, France. (Photo by Craig Mercer/MB Media/Getty Images)

Legendary Wallaby Tim Horan has tipped a shock upset in the Super Rugby Pacific Qualifying Finals, backing Beauden Barrett to lead the Blues past Damian McKenzie’s top-seeded Chiefs and into the semi-finals.

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McKenzie was one of the competition’s best during the regular season, ranked among the elite in Player of the Year voting and made the Team of the Year. In 11 starts, ‘DMac’ scored 171 points, which was 67 more than any other player – Tom Lynagh ranked second with 104.

With forwards like Tupou Vaa’i and Luke Jacobson laying down a marker, McKenzie thrived as world-class backs finished with flair out-wide. The Chiefs were the best team in Super Rugby during the round-robin, and a lot of that comes back to McKenzie’s genius in the No. 10 jersey.

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But with all the pressure and expectation that comes with playing finals football, this weekend’s clash with the Blues is the biggest test of the year for both the Chiefs as a team, and McKenzie as an individual game-driver.

Barrett will line up opposite McKenzie in a fascinating matchup between the two favourites to start for the All Blacks at first five-eighth. This head-to-head battle may be the key to victory for both teams, as Horan explained in the lead-up to Saturday’s clash in Hamilton.

“Sometimes I talk about [how] players are made for Super Rugby, and Damian McKenzie is one of those,” Horan said on Stan Sport’s Rugby Heaven.

“But both these players are made for Super Rugby and they take their Super Rugby form into Test matches, and not many players can do that.

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“Barrett, he can play any position in the backline and he’s got so much vision.

“Whoever plays the best will win the match I think, out of those two 10s. They’ll get similar ball and they’ve got similar styles of game. I’m actually picking the Blues in an upset, only because if Barrett is on the field for 80 minutes, the Blues are such a good chance to win the game.”

McKenzie was a consistent starter for the All Blacks last year, before Barrett took over during the Northern Tour. Barrett was called into the run-on side to face the Wallabies in Wellington before starting in Tests away to England, France and Italy.

Head-to-Head

Last 5 Meetings

Wins
2
Draws
0
Wins
3
Average Points scored
21
27
First try wins
60%
Home team wins
60%

While McKenzie was still named in World Rugby’s Dream Team, some were unconvinced by the pivot at Test level in 2024. With Richie Mo’unga also winning yet another title in Japan, the debate over New Zealand’s top No. 10 rages on.

Who coach Scott Robertson starts for the All Blacks against the French this July remains to be seen, but this weekend’s game is potentially an opportunity for McKenzie to prove “that he is the better player” compared to Barrett.

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“For me with McKenzie, and this is nothing against how great he is because he’s incredible, and he shouldn’t feel like this, but I feel like he feels like he lives in the shadow of Mo’unga and Beauden Barrett,” former Wallaby Cameron Shepherd explained.

“Especially when he puts on that black jersey, that’s why he struggles. In the Chiefs jersey, we know how incredible he is and he performs and just such an incredibly high level.

“This will maybe be an opportunity for him to go head-to-head with Barrett and maybe just throw all that baggage off his shoulders and that’ll help him when he does play for the All Blacks later in the year.

“It’s just a chance to one-on-one show that he is the better player.”

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Comments

4 Comments
B
BH 9 days ago

The Blues could definitely cause an upset but it will most likely be because of guys like Evans, Tele’a or Clarke. So much x-factor in that backline that could turn any bad kick or turnover into a break, get territory upfield and then score points.

L
LW 9 days ago

The blues will win if their fwd pack can get dominance and momentum and only then. And the names in the backfield will be hard carrying if they feature much. Hope they do win just to keep things lively

C
Cantab 9 days ago

Dmac is at his best when his team mates are on top of their opposition and he has the space to cut loose. BB is a more tactical player and not as flamboyant. This match is likely to be a tight affair and grind which I believe will suit the Blues more than the Chiefs. The Aussies may well be right for once.

J
JR 9 days ago

If Tim Horan is the one making these claims, take them with a grain of salt. The mans been dropping braindead takes from the commentary box all season.

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RedWarriors 3 hours ago
'Not a normal rugby team' - The Leinster flex that floored Jake White

I was actually at the match. Leinster were the outstanding team in the league stage. Leinster’s squad depth meant the Bulls could only nick a late win in Pretoria against an understrenght Leinster. Simple put, Leinster are significantly better this year compared to last. The Dublin match last year was a big win by Leinster. Yes they won by a point in the RDS three years ago but thats not relevant to yesterday.

As Leinster are such a dangerous team, it forces an opponent to focus on a strategy to undermine them and that way get their game on the pitch. Leinster allowed that against Northampton. But that was not going to happen again. The Bulls attack in last 10 minutes of the first half was as savage as anything in the URC this year. Yet Leinsters coaching plan repelled them allied to savage commitment from the players. The defense was outstanding, pressure at breakdown outstanding. Leinster did not win the European cup but arguably at their best this year no other European team could reach that height. They reached that yesterday. Leinster completely removed Bulls ability to hurt them.

And Croke Park….100 years ago the Brits fired machine guns into spectators injuring 100s and killing loads. No Irish team ever performs badly there. Same with Irish supporters. Opposition players might as well be Brit Tommies with machine guns.

I think a great Leinster team, played a great game plan, to the height of their power in a horrible stadium for opponents. If Bulls score before half time they were back in the match. They went down, but they went down fighting.

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