'Where'd that come from?' - Aaron Smith credits teenager for match-winning try
For a player world-renowned for his quick, crisp distribution of the ball, Aaron Smith may have caught onlookers by surprise when he scored the Highlanders’ match-winning try against the Chiefs on Friday night.
The 30-year-old came off the bench to replace Kayne Hammington early in the second half, and had a profound impact on the outcome of the match – as did his fellow All Black replacements Dillon Hunt and Shannon Frizell – which culminated in a match-winning try by the posts in the 76th minute.
Four points down and hot on attack, Smith had arrived at a ruck close to the Chiefs’ tryline and assessed his options before swinging a big dummy to the left and stepping through the defensive efforts of Jesse Parete and Michael Allardice to dot down.
Many would have expected Smith to spread the ball wide with a trademark rapid flat ball to put his teammates on the front foot going forward, but his ability to fool the opposition defence with a dummy not only surprised the Chiefs, but also his Highlanders teammates.
The move was no fluke, though, with Smith crediting his teenage teammate for helping him work on the move throughout pre-season training.
“Some of the boys are like ‘where’d that come from’,” the 82-test halfback told Fairfax.
“We’ve got a young halfback down in the Highlanders at the moment and he’s been doing it all pre-season with me around. He’s got me a couple of times. He’s been really pushing me around that and making me look at different parts of my game.
“So that one goes to Folau Fakatava, he’s the man. He’s been dummying everyone at camp, and it just sort of happened.”
Smith’s praise of 19-year-old halfback Fakatava is indicative of the talent that the former Hastings Boys’ High School star possesses.
The Hawke’s Bay youngster is yet to make his Super Rugby debut, but he looks to be a long-term investment for the Highlanders once Smith departs, which he widely expected to do following this year’s World Cup.
Fakatava could make his debut when the Highlanders host the Reds in Dunedin next weekend, while Smith will be hoping to make his first starting appearance of the year after being benched behind second-string halfback Hammington.
Comments on RugbyPass
One that will start to come up from now on is penalties for back pushes during kick chase scrambles. Very difficult to detect. In Croke Park if you replay the Hendy NH try, you will see Furbank push Porter in the back, who collides with Larmour knocking the ball across into Hendy’s path to dot down. A more significant example was in the RWC QTR final where Arendse pushes Fickou into two other French players for the ball to spill into Arendse’s path for him to gather and run in to score SAs first try. Not cheating if you are not caught and very difficult to spot but with kicking becoming so critical I feel its an area that will referreeed/TMO-ed more.
3 Go to commentsWhat a pathetic little twit Andy Goode is, as if we care what he thinks…..😂
111 Go to commentsFoxy has been a wonderful player for the Scarlets and Wales.
1 Go to commentsNika the Georgian is the best referee in the world at the moment. Luckily we will be spared the shite SH refs and Barnes will hopefully remain retired given how shite and embarrassing he was at the RWC.
3 Go to commentsThis is the most exciting game of the summer imo, as we really won’t know in advance how both teams are going to play. - Will Robertson just reproduce his Crusaders tactics from last year, or will there be a conscious effort to borrow from the Hurricanes and Blues, and from the aspects of the ABs world cup strategy that worked well? - England under Borthwick have put in some good performances playing attacking rugby, and some good performances playing kick-oriented defensive rugby. Will Borthwick try to merge them together into a single all-court game, or will he continue switching between different approaches depending on the strengths and weaknesses of the opposition?
1 Go to commentsI’m predicting an aggregate points difference of no more than +/-10pts across both matches this series.
1 Go to commentsI’m predicting an aggregate points difference of no more than +/-10pts across both matches this series.
9 Go to commentsFinals are always tense affairs for the players so I do not expect this to be a spectacle of running rugby unfortunately.
3 Go to commentsBulls***': Ex-England international calls out Eben Etzebeth… Not to his face but from very far away… after he’d left. Checked to make sure he wasn’t in the building.
111 Go to commentsHopefully this will mean a new Auckland league team to support in the west. Big Warriors fan but it’s very, very stale on that front and I’d like the option of another team if it was to watch league again. League needs to step up BIG time if its to get anywhere, another AK team and something from the capitol or south is a must for the game.
3 Go to commentsGood, deep interview, nice job Frankie!
1 Go to commentsNRL players don’t have anywhere near the number of Tests. Some people would be happy having Rest Homes full if 40 yo ex-players walking, or hobbling more like it, into walls. It’s just a game!
4 Go to commentsNOW Razor is worried about ABs getting injured or overplayed! Didn’t bother him last year. He happily played his AB Crusaders.
4 Go to commentsWhat is the World Rugby U20 players born year.
2 Go to commentsMuch like the Chiefs finally gave up waiting for Atu Moli to ever not be injured, you have to wonder if the Chiefs and Crusaders will let Josh Lord and Ethan Blackadder go next season. They’re being well paid to sit in the injury ward every year. Better off putting those funds towards someone who might actually play.
7 Go to commentsShowed better basic skills than some nz Super sides, who probably would have botched some of those backline moves. This tournament really is too short though. Needs more teams, or have them play two rounds to properly prepare them for the near full-time NH U20 sides.
4 Go to commentsGood grief it’s only six months. Probably just upset it’s not an established kiwi entering their prime they can “project” into green to join the rest.
3 Go to commentsGood player but far from being best in the world. That's an exaggeration. Perhaps Best in world by Northern Hemisphere standards and biasis but certainly not Southern Hemi standards
3 Go to commentsWell one thing about World Cup knock out rounds and Ireland is very clear: they won’t be getting ahead of themselves in ‘27! Because making it beyond the QF is well and truly ‘IN THEIR HEADS’ now…😉
111 Go to commentsHas this guy been dope tested? Sounds like a case of “roid rage”.
1 Go to comments