Rocky weekend for northern trio
What a putrid weekend for the three Kiwi Super Rugby franchises based in the North Island.
The Blues, Chiefs and Hurricanes were all well beaten in the second round, which featured a string of results to suggest the New Zealand conference might not be as dominant as in recent years.
There were encouraging signs from a couple of Australian sides, particularly the Brumbies, who handed the Chiefs their worst defeat in five years when they crushed them 54-17 in Canberra on Saturday night.
It followed Brad Thorn’s young Reds pushing the Highlanders to the brink in Dunedin the previous night, when the home side needed a late try to flanker Dillon Hunt to get home 36-31 and avoid an upset in the round’s most entertaining fixture.
Positivity has been flowing from across the ditch in the aftermath of the Reds’ and Brumbies’ performances, suggesting the days of Kiwi teams having their way with the Aussies could be over.
It’s too early to know for sure if that’s the case, but signs of increasing parity in the competition should be welcomed by all.
While the Blues and Chiefs are two of four teams without a win in 2019, the Crusaders and Highlanders are at the other end of the scale. Only the Sharks (2-0) and Rebels (1-0) are also undefeated.
As impressive as the Crusaders’ 38-22 trouncing of the Hurricanes was in Christchurch on Saturday night, the result which made everyone take notice was the Brumbies’ running riot against the Chiefs.
It was all but one-way traffic, with the hosts running in eight tries to two and amassing 463 metres to the Chiefs’ 165.
No wonder Chiefs coach Colin Cooper told Stuff he was ‘‘a bit speechless’’ after watching his team get melted in captain Brodie Retallick’s 100th game.
‘‘We’re all in shock, really, and surprised with that result,’’ he said.
The Hamilton-based franchise, which welcomed back Damian McKenzie at the weekend, is now dead last in the 15-team competition. Fittingly, their next opponent is the 14th-placed Sunwolves.
Speaking of shocked, Hurricanes captain Dane Coles looked it after his team was trampled by the New Zealand conference leading Crusaders in a match they trailed 24-0 at halftime, and 31-0 early in the second half.
With a competition-record 17th straight win in the bag, the Crusaders unloaded their bench and promptly lost their shape. It was costly, as the Hurricanes struck twice at the death to deny them a bonus point.
While the Hurricanes looked like a bunch of imposters in the first half, the Crusaders were anything but as they repeatedly shredded the visitors’ leaky line with moments of magic such as wing Manasa Mataele’s glorious offload to Richie Mo’unga.
Then there was the Blues. Remember all the optimism during the off-season, after they came ever so close to pipping the Crusaders at Eden Park in round one?
Well, they’re in a familiar 0-2 hole to start the season after being rolled 26-7 by the Sharks in muggy Durban.
‘‘The most disappointing thing is we were responsible for most of the mistakes. You can handle being beaten by a team that plays exceptionally well, but when you play a big part in the loss through individual or structural errors, it is hard to swallow,’’ coach Leon MacDonald rued.
It doesn’t get any easier for the Auckland-based side, given they’ve got a date with the Jaguares in Buenos Aires next weekend.
Judging by the Jaguares’ 27-12 bonus point win against the Bulls yesterday, there is decent chance the Blues will limp back to New Zealand with an 0-3 record.
With two bonus point wins in as many weeks, the Sharks sit atop the ladder, although it would be premature to get carried away given their scalps were against the Sunwolves and Blues.
Sharks Crusaders Brumbies Highlanders Bulls Lions Jaguares Waratahs Rebels Hurricanes Stormers Reds Blues Sunwolves Chiefs
To be fair to the Sunwolves, Tony Brown’s men rebounded from last week’s towelling to almost shock the Waratahs in Tokyo on Saturday. If only Kurow product Hayden Parker managed to land a late drop goal attempt in the 31-30 defeat.
It was a dramatic finish, as was the case in Cape Town, where Stormers halfback Hershel Jantjies scored five minutes after the hooter to pip the Lions 19-17.