Hurricanes claim nine try thriller
The home side grabbed three tries either side of half-time to claim their fourth victory of the campaign, while handing the South American side their biggest losing margin thus far. Before this loss, the Jaguares never lost a match by more than eight points.
It was a fast start by both sides as they looked happy to throw the ball around and run it at their opponents. The Hurricanes should have taken the lead in the eighth minute but Brad Barrett missed a regulation penalty after the Jaguares were caught in an offside position inside their 22.
He would make up for that miss two minutes later though when he ran onto a clever Ardie Savea grubber kick to slide all of five metres for the opening try of the match. He added the extras to hand the Hurricanes a 7-0 lead after 10 minutes.
Both sides were guilty of giving away unnecessary penalties at the breakdown and once such transgression allowed the Jaguares to set up a rolling maul from an attacking line-out. Ardie Savea collapsed it a few metres short of the try line and was sent to the bin for his efforts.
The Jaguares took full advantage of the extra man by showing great patience to take the resulting play through the phases. They used their forwards to great effect and Leonardo Senatore got his hands on the ball to bash his way over. Sanchez added the conversion to level matters in the 23rd minute.
The match remained evenly poised from that point and just as it seemed like the Hurricanes were building up much needed momentum, out popped Matías Moroni to pick off a pass and race about 70 metres to grab the Jaguares' second score of the night. Sanchez failed with the conversion though but the South Americans held a 1-7 lead after 33 minutes.
This sparked the Hurricanes into life and sustained pressure on the Jaguares' defence paid off in the final minutes of the half as Julian Savea grabbed tries in the 38th and 39th minutes. Scrumhalf TJ Perenara was influential on both occasions to set up the man they call The Bus.
Barrett made no mistake with both conversions as the Hurricanes went into the half-time interval with a 21-12 lead.
The Jaguares camped inside the Canes' half after play resumed and were awarded a 50th minute penalty when Willis Halaholo was penalised for an off the ball tackle on Moroni. Sanchez slotted the kick at goals to reduce the deficit to six points.
The Canes were forced to work hard on defence as the Jaguares maintained the pressure on their opponents. The homes die managed to turn over possession on their five metre line and after a great counter attack, soon found themselves inside the Jaguares' 22.
A neat set move saw captain Dane Coles cut inside to receive a pass from Barrett and the flying hooker sliced through the Jaguares' defence to grab his side's fourth try of the match. Barrett converted the score to stretch the lead to 28-15 after 58 minutes.
The home side began to turn on the style from that point and a powerful scrum close to the Jaguares' five metre line saw them send a long pass which found the hands of J Savea. There was no stopping the big man from a few metres out as he grabbed his hat-trick. Barrett failed to add the extras but the Hurricanes lead stretched to 33-15 after 62 minutes.
The Jaguares were not going down without a fight and continued to plug away at the Hurricanes' defence. They proved just how strong their scrum can be when they provided a perfect platform for Martín Landajo to work from. The scrumhalf spotted a massive opening on the blind side and sniped around to grab his side's third try of the match.
Sanchez made sure of the extras as the Jaguares trailed 22-33 with 10 minutes remaining in the contest.
The Jaguares remained on the front foot for the remainder of the match and game within inches of grabbing a fourth try but it was the home side who had the final say as Ben May bashed his way over to secure the bonus point. Barrett added the extras to seal the match.
Man of the match: Leonardo Senatore was a menace at the breakdown and his defensive work rate kept the Hurricanes attack at bay on numerous occasions. While Nicolás Sánchez was good with ball in hand and his tactical kicking was fair, his work on defence left much to be desired. Jaguares captain Martín Landajo was by far their standout player as he controlled the tempo of the game and provided his side with swift service. Hurricanes captain Dane Coles set the tone for the rest of the team to follow while Ardie Savea's great all round game was only let down by his yellow card. Julian Savea grabbed a hat-trick and had some good runs but the man who gets the nod is scrumhalf TJ Perenara, whose excellent vision, brilliant service and reading of the game helped the Hurricanes grab five tries.
Scorers:
For Hurricanes:
Tries: Barrett, J Savea 3, Coles, May
Cons: Barrett 5
For Jaguares:
Tries: Senatore, Moroni, Landajo
Cons: Sanchez 2
Pen: Sanchez
Yellow card: Ardie Savea (Hurricanes, professional foul – collapsing the maul, 19)
Teams:
Hurricanes: 15 Cory Jane, 14 Matt Proctor, 13 Willis Halaholo, 12 Julian Savea, 11 Ngani Laumape, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 TJ Perenara, 8 Victor Vito, 7 Ardie Savea, 6 Brad Shields, 5 Blade Thomson, 4 Michael Fatialofa, 3 Jeff Toomaga-Allen, 2 Dane Coles (captain), 1 Reggie Goodes.
Replacements: 16 Motu Matu'u, 17 Chris Eves, 18 Ben May, 19 Vaea Fifita, 20 Callum Gibbins, 21 Jamison Gibson-Park, 22 Otere Black, 23 Vincent Tavae-Aso.
Jaguares: 15 Ramiro Moyano, 14 Matías Orlando, 13 Matías Moroni, 12 Santiago González Iglesias, 11 Emiliano Boffelli, 10 Nicolás Sánchez, 9 Martín Landajo (captain), 8 Leonardo Senatore, 7 Rodrigo Báez, 6 Pablo Matera, 5 Tomás Lavanini, 4 Guido Petti, 3 Ramiro Herrera, 2 Julián Montoya, 1 Santiago García Botta.
Replacements: 16 Facundo Bosch, 17 Roberto Tejerizo, 18 Enrique Pieretto, 19 Juan Cruz Guillemaín, 20 Juan Manuel Leguizamón, 21 Gonzalo Bertranou, 22 Jerónimo de la Fuente, 23 Joaquín Paz.
Referee: Nick Briant (New Zealand)
