NAHOLO HAS RECORD NOW
WAISAKE Naholo broke the Highlanders’ tryscoring record last month.
Well, maybe he did, maybe he did not.
It all depends on who you talk to and what rules you interpret.
As Highlanders chief executive Roger Clark says, it is ‘‘clear as mud’’
Naholo has now scored 37 tries for the Highlanders — that we can confirm.
He has scored 36 tries in Super Rugby and, in addition, one against the British and Irish Lions.
This is where it gets complicated.
The Highlanders — and every other New Zealand Super Rugby side — list records for Super Rugby games only.
So records are broken and appearances made solely in Super Rugby games.
When Naholo scored against the Lions — the South African version — last Saturday night he set a record for the fran chise with 36 Super Rugby tries, breaking Jeff Wilson’s record.
But add in the try he scored against the British and Irish Lions last June, he broke the Highlanders’ tryscoring record in the victory over the Brumbies in the middle of last month.
Clark said it was a difficult one but New Zealand Rugby and all the New Zealand franchises just dealt in Super Rugby games.
The game against the British and Irish Lions was a firstclass game but was not a Super Rugby game.
It was an anomaly but the system was geared towards Super Rugby games, Clark said.
Players’ appearances come in Super Rugby games only.
Prop Daniel LienertBrown played his 50th game for the Highlanders earlier this season against the Blues in Auckland but it was not recorded until the side was in South Africa as he had also played against the British and Irish Lions last year.
The Highlanders have a match against the French Barbarians in Invercargill late next month and that will be a firstclass game. But it will not count as a Super Rugby game in the records.
Super Rugby sides had only started playing games against touring teams in the past few years so the issue has only just arisen.