Chiefs defeats ‘flushed’

Aaron Goile

aaron.goile@stuff.co.nz

Just as All Blacks coach Steve Hansen famously suggested to ‘‘flush the dunny and move on’’, the Chiefs are looking to do the same in turning around a horror start to their Super Rugby season.

It’s an under-pressure unit who sit at 0-2 following the failure to close out an opening-round contest against the Highlanders, and then the 54-17 embarrassment at the hands of the Brumbies in Canberra last weekend.

Not since 2011 have the Chiefs opened their season with back-toback losses, but back in Hamilton against the Sunwolves tonight they have the prime opportunity to put things right.

Only thing is, the Sunwolves don’t look the pushover they’ve often been in their first three years in the competition, and this is a Chiefs team low on confidence, clunky in execution, and with big defensive frailties.

Against the Brumbies, it was just the second time in history the Chiefs had ever coughed up eight tries in a defeat (there were nine in a whacky win over the Lions in 2010), with the other being in that illfated final against the Bulls in 2009.

Assistant coach Neil Barnes has this year taken on the mantle of defence and would have had his work cut out this week, with the Chiefs level with the Sunwolves in leading the ‘tries conceded’ category, with 11 – three ahead of the next-worst culprits.

But rather than being one of those games that gets pored over and pored over, chief playmaker Damian McKenzie said the group’s mindset was about kicking that performance to touch.

‘‘We’ve learned a lot this week, but we’ve sort of just flushed that game,’’ he said.

‘‘Obviously we were pretty disappointed in how we performed, we just got outplayed by a better team.

‘‘For us, it was about looking at what we need to improve on. And I guess you can’t dwell on a performance like that too much.’’

McKenzie, who after missing the opening round with an ankle niggle – which counted as one of his two All Blacks stand-down games – will have new partners either side of him at FMG Stadium Waikato, as Brad Weber returns at halfback and Orbyn Leger slots in at second-five for the rested Anton Lienert-Brown.

Communication will be key, and it’s something which has been a big focus right throughout the team this week, with a feeling it has been lacking in the first fortnight.

‘‘There’s going to be moments which aren’t going to go our way, but it’s about how we react to that, and through our talk is pretty important – we don’t want to go Super Rugby, round 3

Chiefs v Sunwolves

FMG Stadium Waikato, Hamilton Tonight, 7.35pm

Chiefs: Shaun Stevenson, Sean Wainui, Tumua Manu, Orbyn Leger, Etene Nanai-Seturo, Damian McKenzie, Brad Weber, Taleni Seu, Mitchell Karpik, Mitchell Brown, Michael Allardice, Brodie Retallick (c), Angus Ta’avao, Samisoni Taukei’aho, Aidan Ross. Reserves: Bradley Slater, Tevita Mafileo, Sefo Kautai, Jesse Parete, Lachlan Boshier, Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi, Alex Nankivell, Ataata Moeakiola.

Sunwolves: Jason Emery, Gerhard van den Heever, Shane Gates, Michael Little (c), Jamie Henry, Hayden Parker, Kaito Shigeno, Rahboni Warren-Vosayaco, Shuhei Matsuhashi, Hendrik Tui, Uwe Helu, Luke Thompson, Hiroshi Yamashita, Atsushi Sakate, Pauliasi Manu.

Reserves: Nathan Vella, Sam Prattley, Asaeli Ai Valu, Tom Rowe, James Moore, Jamie Booth, Phil Burleigh, Rikiya Matsuda.

inside our shells and shut down,’’ said McKenzie, who will also have strong chat on the right wing now that Sean Wainui is back from injury.

McKenzie said the determination among the squad to bounce back was ‘‘massive’’. It needs to be. It only gets tougher from here, with the Crusaders and Hurricanes looming in the next two weeks.

‘‘We know we’ve got a job to do this weekend. Obviously we haven’t started the way we’d like to start, and we were disappointed with last weekend’s result. But we’ve flushed that.

‘‘We’ve just got a new challenge this week, which we’re really excited about.’’

That comes in the form of a Sunwolves team who the Chiefs dispatched 61-10 in Japan last year, but in their only other meeting – in Hamilton in 2017 – pushed the hosts much closer, losing 27-20.

Four former Chiefs feature in tonight’s lineup – props Pauliasi Manu, Hiroshi Yamashita and Sam Prattley, along with midfielder Phil Burleigh – in a side which eventually got overpowered in losing 45-10 to the Sharks in Singapore first-up, then who were unlucky not to beat the Waratahs in Tokyo last weekend, missing a late drop goal and falling 31-30.

‘‘Sometimes you don’t know what to expect, obviously the coaching staff they’ve got [led by Tony Brown], they like to throw a few tricks in the bag,’’ McKenzie said.

‘‘They’ve played exciting rugby.

‘‘For us, it’s been about focusing on what we can do.

‘‘It’s nice to be back home, and try and put a good performance on for our supporters.’’ some pretty