All Black back rowers star in Highlanders-Hurricanes derby

All Black back rowers star in Highlanders-Hurricanes derby

The Hurricanes edged the Highlanders in a thrilling start to the weekend's Super Rugby action. Both sides traded attacking blows in the opening minutes of the game but the Hurricanes were the first side to hit the canvas with Shannon Frizell powering over the line in the 18th minute. 

The Hurricanes bounced back up and it did not take the Wellington-based franchise long to hit back with TJ Perenara becoming the first halfback to score 50 Super Rugby tries. 


Again it did not take long for the Highlanders to land a counter punch with Ash Dixon scoring from a driving maul with the decision going upstairs to the TMO who found no clear evidence to rule out the try.

With the Highlanders hanging onto a 7 point lead heading into the final moments of the game, Ardie Savea came up with a superb intercept to level the scores 14 all at the break.





The Hurricanes took the lead for the first time in the match moments after the break with Beauden Barrett maintaining his 100% kicking record for the night with a penalty kick. 

The Highlanders looked to have the game in the bag with 20 minutes to play following tries from Kayne Hammington and James Lentjies but Ardie Savea and Ben Lam came to the sides rescue as they combined to score a stunning try in the 61st minute.


Just 4 minutes later Ngani Laumape put the Hurricanes into the lead as his side looked to hang on with 15 minutes to play. 

The Highlanders were relentless in their attack to try and save the result but a stolen lineout and a kick into touch sealed the result for the Hurricanes who played the final moments with 14-men with Liam Mitchell sent to the bin.

The All Blacks Loosies step up.

The blindside flank is one of the few positions in the All Blacks squad that is still relatively open for anyone to grab. Liam Squire has been Steve Hansen's go to man when fit since Jerome Kaino's departure but the Highlanders man has struggled with injuries lately. 

In his absence, Shannon Frizell and Vaea Fifita have stepped and made claims for the jersey. 

In this clash, Frizell was the standout making 12 carries and 11 tackles. He also continued his impressive try-scoring record and racked up 30 running metres. His aggression and work around the park will certainly impress Steve Hansen as he continues to make a real claim for a starting role. 

On the other side of the pitch, Fifita still impressed despite Frizell taking the W in the head to head battle. Fifita was also all over the park but failed to make a similar impact on attack. 

Ardie Savea was in sensational form for the Canes and was involved in nearly every phase of important play. On attack, Savea managed to gain 100 metres in the match, beat three defenders and score two important tries.

Savea has been incredible since Sam Cane's unfortunate injury and if he continues in this vein it will be difficult for Hansen to pick who will be his made to start in the 7 jersey. 

IMAGE: Hurricanes/Twitter

In this Article

Latest News