Chiefs duo aims for fondest of farewells
As Super Rugby gets set to start this week, Fairfax NZ previews the New Zealand teams’ campaigns. Today, it is the turn of the Chiefs. Aaron Goile reports.
It’s the end of an era at the Chiefs, and Dave Rennie has got the band back together for a farewell tour. The hope is they can produce one more greatest hit.
With coach Rennie departing at the end of the season to take the reins at Glasgow, and his linchpin Aaron Cruden following suit in heading to Montpellier, there should be no shortage of motivation for the Chiefs to add to the Super Rugby titles they claimed in 2012 and 2013.
When Rennie arrived at the franchise and brought Cruden, his key playmaker, with him from Manawatu it was a remarkable instant cure to the Chiefs’ struggles of years gone by. The duo will link up for a sixth Super campaign, and in many respects the pressure will be off, knowing there is nothing more they need to prove ahead of their departures.
Rennie has turned the clock back further for this last hurrah, with previous title-tasters Liam Messam and Tim Nanai-Williams back in the fold, and even Dwayne Sweeney on the fringes, ready for a return, joining Stephen Donald who’s in his second season back. It’s some valuable experience, which can often go underestimated.
The initial 38-man Chiefs squad had 31 players backing up from last year, and includes four-test tighthead prop Nepo Laulala and openside flanker Mitchell Karpik, who were both ruled out of last season with knee injuries.
But just as the Chiefs thought they might strike better fortune than they’ve had in recent years by escaping pre-season injuries, they were dealt a double blow when loosehead prop Mitchell Graham and halfback Brad Weber were ruled out for the season after suffering leg injuries in the final of the Brisbane Global Tens tournament, which the Chiefs went on to win.
That will place plenty more responsibility on fringe All Blacks Kane Hames and Tawera KerrBarlow, while two others who have worn the black jersey will also not suit up straight away, with hooker Nathan Harris targeting an April return from his ruptured ACL, and midfielder Charlie Ngatai still with a real question mark hovering, following his concussion suffered in May last year.
With Seta Tamanivalu having headed to the Crusaders it means the midfield onus will really go on Anton Lienert-Brown, who made such a great fist of his All Blacks callup in 2016 and showed maturity beyond his years. NanaiWilliams looks a likely partner outside, while Taranaki hardhitter Johnny Fa’auli looms as an exciting option.
Provided the Chiefs pack can hold their own at set piece – and with the big lineout targets of Brodie Retallick and Dominic Bird there is expectation – the rest can take care of itself.
The Chiefs are blessed with quality back-rowers, with Messam, Sam Cane and Michael Leitch providing quality and calm heads, while the development of blindside/lock Taleni Seu after a fine first year will be intriguing.
With Cruden pulling the strings at No 10, the distribution to the dangerous outsides should see points aplenty, with Damian McKenzie sure to again be dangerous from fullback, while also popping into first receiver, and the likes of James Lowe and Shaun Stevenson waiting on the wings. As always though, it’s a tough New Zealand conference to be able to crack to claim the one home quarterfinal berth on offer.
The Chiefs will likely have to hit the ground running, as they start with three Kiwi derbies, while a three-week trip to South Africa and Perth comes not long later.
After exiting in week one of the playoffs in 2014 and 2015, the Chiefs went one better last season, but were knocked over by eventual champions the Hurricanes in their semifinal in Wellington.
This time round if they can hit the right notes they have the chance to fittingly farewell two inspirational figures, who have struck such a chord with the team.