Canes too strong for Chiefs
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The table-topping Hurricanes closed out the Super rugby regular season with a 21-13 win over the Chiefs on Saturday, in a physical encounter in New Plymouth.
After struggling for most of the first-half, the Hurricanes turned the game in a three-minute burst when they scored twice to hit the front 14-13 just before the break.
They scored the only try in a second spell that swung from one end of the field to the other to confirm their domination of the championship by going into the knockout stages having won 14 of 16 matches this year.
The Chiefs entered the final round locked in a battle with the Highlanders for fourth place, but had to be content with fifth after the southerners opened the weekend with a 44-7 rout of the Blues.
To overtake the Highlanders and secure a home play-off, the Chiefs needed to score at least four tries and beat the Hurricanes by 37 points or more.
They started as if they believed the could succeed with a 70-metre runaway try by Bryce Heem in the 15th minute, converted by Marty McKenzie, giving them an early 7-0 lead.
The Chiefs were helped by the opposition's erratic lineout and a high turnover count, as well as two easy penalties gifted to McKenzie as they controlled the first 35 minutes.
But the Hurricanes' early errors were balanced by their trademark running game, and captain Conrad Smith said he knew they would come right.
"There was a lot of pride in that game. A lot of people said we had nothing to play for… Apparently we were underdogs," he said.
"We've got a lot of pride in the jersey and it doesn't matter who we're playing we want to play well."
When they found their rhythm just before half-time, the Hurricanes scored twice in quick succession to turn a 0-13 deficit into a 14-13 lead.
The first was a penalty try when Chiefs fullback Tom Marshall was yellow-carded for a shoulder charge on Julian Savea diving for the line.
Marshall's brother James, the Hurricanes' flyhalf, slotted the conversion and set up the second try when he broke through the Chiefs' defensive wall to put Smith over.
The Chiefs had a chance to regain the lead with a penalty on half-time but turned down a shot at goal in favour of a lineout drive, only to be held out by a determined Hurricanes defence.
James Marshall increased the lead to 21-13 when he intercepted a pass from McKenzie then ran 30 metres to the line. He converted his own try to complete the scoring.
The Chiefs will now travel to Dunedin to play the Highlanders in a play-off game next weekend, while the Hurricanes have a week off before a semifinal against the highest-ranked winner of the two play-off matches.
Man of the match: Sonny Bill Williams made a great return with some big hits and quality offloads. Liam Messam worked hard on the flank and Brodie Retallick was a menace in the line-outs stealing ball. Conrad Smith was solid for the Hurricanes as was Brad Shields who was all over the park. But James Marshall scoops the accolade for an 11 point contribution including a try to his name.
The scorers:
For the Chiefs:
Try: Heem
Con: McKenzie
Pens: McKenzie 2
For the Hurricanes:
Tries: Penalty Try, Smith, Marshall
Cons: Marshall 3
Yellow card: Tom Marshall (Chiefs, 35 – foul play, shoulder charge)
Teams:
Chiefs: 15 Tom Marshall, 14 Bryce Heem, 13 Charlie Ngatai, 12 Sonny Bill Williams, 11 James Lowe/Hosea Gear, 10 Marty McKenzie, 9 Brad Weber, 8 Maama Vaipuu, 7 Michael Leitch, 6 Liam Messam (captain), 5 Brodie Retallick, 4 Matt Symons, 3 Ben Tameifuna, 2 Quentin MacDonald, 1 Pauliasi Manu.
Replacements: 16 Rhys Marshall, 17 Siate Tokolahi, 18 Jamie Mackintosh, 19 Michael Fitzgerald, 20 Mitchell Crosswell, 21 Augustine Pulu, 22 Andrew Horrell, 23 Damian McKenzie.
Hurricanes: 15 Nehe Milner-Skudder, 14 Cory Jane, 13 Conrad Smith (captain), 12 Rey Lee-Lo, 11 Julian Savea, 10 James Marshall, 9 TJ Perenara, 8 Victor Vito, 7 Callum Gibbins, 6 Brad Shields, 5 Mark Abbott, 4 Jeremy Thrush, 3 Ben Franks, 2 Dane Coles, 1 Reggie Goodes.
Replacements: 16 Brayden Mitchell, 17 Chris Eves, 18 Jeffery Toomaga-Allen, 19 James Broadhurst, 20 Ardie Savea, 21 Frae Wilson, 22 Willis Halaholo, 23 Sam McNicholl.
Referee: Chris Pollock (New Zealand)
Assistant referees: Shane McDermott (New Zealand), Paul Williams (New Zealand)
TMO: Chris Wratt (New Zealand)
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