Yesterday it was a great day to go to Palmerston North to see my beloved Hurricanes play against the Western Force.
Me and Pops went through Kaitoke, Whangaehu, Turakina, Bulls (Pops went to the toilet/wharepaku there), Sanson, Awahuri and Newbury, we have finally reached Palmy but 1st Poppa needed to buy both tickets for the game and he did before going to the mall to have a look so Pops bought a portable vacuum cleaner as well as his pants but I was thinking that we could go to the sports bar for dinner but Pops told me that he was looking for a restaurant such as Asian (Like Chinese or Indian), but we ended up going to Cobb and Co and I had a burger there while Poppa had roast.
And after that, we went to the Central Energy Trust Arena and we found a car park just in time but we had to wait until 6 o'clock for the gates to open and we found a seat to sit in and I saw injured Hurricanes player Nehe Milner-Skudder as well as ex Black Fern Melodie Robinson, former All Black Christian Cullen and Scotty 'Sumo' Stevenson as well as the fans, Hurricanes and Force team personnel and the cameramen.
And as the match went underway, let's see how the match unfolds during the 1st half:
START: We are underway as the referee blows his whistle.
4TH MINUTE: The defensive line has been broken as Victor Vito goes through the gap.
1 MINUTE LATER A gap opened in the defence and James Marshall took full advantage.
4 MINUTES LATER: Beauden Barrett can consider himself unlucky as he sees the ball hit the left upright and bounce away.
4 MINUTES LATER, PENALTY: Peter Grant has kicked a penalty goal.
3 MINUTES LATER: Force have won 20 rucks so far this game and this is dangerous for the defence as Ben Tapuai bursts through to advance the Force attack.
1 MINUTE LATER: Trouble here as Solomoni 'Junior' Rasolea breaches the defence
2 MINUTES LATER, PENALTY: Peter Grant steps up to take the penalty but pulls it wide and to the right.
1 MINUTE LATER: Hurricanes have won 20 rucks so far this game.
2 MINUTES LATER: Fabulous play by the Hurricanes has led to Victor Vito being able to wriggle through a gap.
3 MINUTES LATER, TRY: Great hands by the Canes leads to a try for Dane Coles as Ardie Savea sets up the try and Dane Coles makes the break as the defence re-enacts the parting of the red sea.
1 MINUTE LATER, CONVERSION: Beaudy Barrett has kicked a conversion.
1 MINUTE LATER: What a run here by Marcel Brache as he gets over the gainline.
5 MINUTES LATER: Force have won 40 rucks so far this game.
2 MINUTES LATER: The defensive line has been broken as Barrett goes through the gap.
1 MINUTE LATER: Hurricanes have won 40 rucks so far this game.
2 MINUTES LATER: A gap opened in the defence and Alby Mathewson took full advantage.
1 MINUTE LATER: This is dangerous for the defence as TJ Perenara bursts through to advance the Hurricanes attack.
1 MINUTE LATER, PENALTY: Beauden Barrett kicks the penalty.
1 MINUTE LATER, HALF-TIME: The half-time whistle blows and both teams’ head for the dressing rooms.
What about the 1st half, it wasn't pretty reckless like far beyond our expectations, alright, 2nd half anyone?
40TH MINUTE: The 2nd half is underway.
3 MINUTES LATER, PENALTY: Peter Grant makes no mistake with that penalty goal attempt.
1 MINUTE LATER: Trouble here as Vaea Fifita breaches the defence.
3 MINUTES LATER, SUBSTITUTION: Nathan Charles comes off while Heath Tessmann comes on but fabulous play by the Canes has led to Chris Eves being able to wriggle through a gap.
1 MINUTE LATER: The Hurricanes have won 60 rucks so far this game.
2 MINUTES LATER: Victor Vito leaves the field while Callum Gibbins comes on for the Canes
3 MINUTES LATER: Ben McCalman makes the break as the defence re-enacts the parting of the red sea.
2 MINUTE LATER: What a run here by Vince Aso as he gets over the gainline.
1 MINUTE LATER, TRY: Matt Hodgson has made 10 good tackles so far this game while the Canes are only a few metres out, surely they must score! And they do with James Marshall touching down and the Hurricanes have won 80 rucks so far this game.
1 MINUTE LATER: That's a great try assist by Perenara.
1 MINUTE LATER, SUBSTITUTION & MISSED CONVERSION: Alby Mathewson departs for Force as Force sub Ryan Louwrens comes onto the field as Beauden Barrett has hooked the conversion to the left of the posts.
1 MINUTE LATER: The defensive line has been broken as Rasolea goes through the gap.
1 MINUTE LATER: The Hurricanes make a substitution with Vince Aso coming off and the Hurricanes make a sub with Willis Halaholo coming on.
2 MINUTES LATER: A gap opened in the defence and Willis Halaholo took full advantage.
1 MINUTE LATER, TRY: A series of passes by Hurricanes results in a try for TJ Perenara.
1 MINUTE LATER, SUBSTITUTION & CONVERSION: Tetera Faulkner comes off as Jermaine Ainsley comes on then Ben McCalman comes off while Brynard Stander comes on before Beauden Barrett converts the try then Dane Coles comes off as Ricky Riccitelli comes on.
1 MINUTE LATER: Julian Savea leaves the field as Jason Woodward comes on for Hurricanes then TJ Perenara departs for Hurricanes while Hurricanes sub Jamison Gibson-Park comes onto the field but the Canes make a substitution with Jeff Toomaga-Allen coming off and the Canes make a sub with Ben May (The one I famously met with because I had 3 photos at my flat including giving me a Hurricanes development jersey) coming on while the Hurricanes decide to make another substitution, with Chris Eves being replaced.by the Tongan Bear, Loni Uhila getting some game time then Mark Abbott comes off as Michael Fatialofa comes on.
2 MINUTES LATER, TRY: Force have won 60 rucks so far this game but This is dangerous for the defence as Willis Halaholo bursts through to advance the Hurricanes attack and a wonderful passing move by Hurricanes is finished off by Blade Thomson.
1 MINUTE LATER, CONVERSION: Beaudy Barrett makes no mistake with that conversion attempt.
1 MINUTE LATER, SUBSTITUTION: Semisi Masirewa comes off as Albert Nikoro comes on while Pekahou 'Pek' Cowan comes off then as Chris Heiberg comes on then Heath Tessmann leaves the field while Nathan Charles comes back on for Force but Jamison Gibson-Park played a key part in that try.
2 MINUTES LATER, TRY: Silky skills by Hurricanes ends with a try for Ngani Lauampe.
1 MINUTE LATER, SUBSTITUTION: Nathan Charles departs for Force as Force sub Heath Tessmann comes back onto the field.
1 MINUTE LATER, ANOTHER SUBTITUTION & MISSED CONVERSION: Force make a substitution with Adam Coleman coming off and Steve Mafi coming on but trouble here as Jamison Gibson-Park breaches the defence then a spellbinding play by Barrett is finished off with a try but absolutely fabulous play by Hurricanes has led to Ngani Lauampe being able to wriggle through a gap but Beauden Barrett has hooked the conversion to the right of the posts.
3 MINUTES LATER: Ben May makes the break as the defence re-enacts the parting of the red sea.
1 MINUTE LATER: Hurricanes have won 100 rucks so far this game.
1 MINUTE LATER, TRY: The Hurricanes pack has powered over for Ardie Savea to score the try.
1 MINUTE LATER, TRY: Beaudy Barrett does the business as his conversion attempt goes over.
1 MINUTE LATER, FULL-TIME: It's all over! The referee has blown his whistle to end the game.
And that's it! We are done as we head off home to end a beautiful night at Palmerston North but what an rugby experience that was.
Saturday, 19 March 2016
Wednesday, 2 March 2016
2016 Super Rugby season: Round 1 review
The Super Rugby season began when the Blues took on the defending champion Highlanders at Eden Park as the Blues got off to a winning start under their new coach (Which is a former All Black) Tana Umaga.
But the Blues got their Super Rugby campaign off to a fine start when they beat the defending champs the Highlanders 33 - 31 in Auckland on Friday as the Highlanders are being widely tipped to retain their crown this season and they made a gallant attempt to continue where they left off last year, but it wasn’t to be, and although they outscored their hosts four tries to three, with two from Ben Smith (AKA Bender/Ben From Accounts) as they won’t get a try-scoring bonus-point under the tournament’s new rules as both sides deserve credit for making this the entertaining spectacle that it was, especially the Blues who seem rejuvenated under the guidance of new head coach Tana Umaga as he won his first game in charge but the Highlanders were fastest out of the blocks and their enterprising play was rewarded in the eighth minute when Ben Smith ran on to a pass from Aaron Smith and burst through a hole in the Blues defence before diving over for the opening try.
The Blues didn’t wait long to respond and they were soon level when Melani Nanai rounded off a move which started inside his own half as first five-eighth Ihaia West was the try’s architect with a perfectly weighted chip kick in which Tevita Li gathered close to the halfway line. He drew in the final defender before offloading to Nanai who got over for an easy try as West and Lima Sopoaga then traded penalties before Blake Gibson announced himself with a superb try. The flanker bashed his way through Ben Smith deep inside the Highlanders half before crashing over. West added the extras and soon made it 17 - 10 to the hosts with another three-pointer from the kicking tee but the Highlanders didn’t panic, however, and showed why they are the champions when Ben Smith put Teihorangi Walden (A Pakeha with a Maori name) into the clear inside the Blues’ 22.
Walden then sold the cover defence an outrageous dummy before dotting down. West landed another penalty in the 37th minute before 2015’s top try-scorer Waisake Naholo left his stamp on this match with a well-taken try as Aaron Smith spotted a hole in the Blues’ defence and launched a box kick which Naholo gathered from under the noses of two defenders before crossing the whitewash on the stroke of half-time.
The 2nd half was more subdued and the opening quarter was a scrappy affair. The first points of the half came in the 57th minute via a penalty from West which meant the Highlanders led 24-23 going into the final quarter, but West then gave his team the lead 5 minutes later when he slotted another penalty.
The visitors suffered a setback ten minutes later when winger Patrick Osborne was yellow carded for cleaning out illegally at a ruck and the Blues made full use of their numerical advantage when lock Patrick Tuipulotu crashed over after his side opted to kick for a lineout from the penalty deep inside the Highlanders’ 22 but the defending champions didn’t surrender though and a flowing move – in which several players handled in the build-up – in the 78th minute was rounded off by Ben Smith in the corner close to full-time, but it wasn’t enough to secure victory.
But the next match was between the Brumbies and last year's runners-up the Hurricanes as the Brumbies made light work of the Hurricanes (Although the Brumbies defence restricted the Hurricanes to 1 try but Phil Kearns (Ex Wallaby hooker and rugby commentator for Fox Sports) described the Hurricanes as being too fat, slow and unfit) in their Super Rugby opener, claiming a 52 - 10 bonus-point win in Canberra on Friday followed by newcomers the Jaguares of Argentina beat the Cheetahs by just a single point in their historic debut match when they turned around a 21-point deficit to win their first ever Super Rugby game 34 - 33 against the Cheetahs in a thrilling contest then a day later, all eyes were in Tokyo as fellow newcomers the Sunwolves of Japan played their 1st Super Rugby game against the Lions but the Lions sealed a 26 - 13 four-try victory but they made heavy weather of seeing off the Sunwolves in Tokyo on Saturday moments before the Chiefs headed to Christchurch to play the Crusaders as the Chiefs outscored the Crusaders 4 tries to 2 to claim a deserved 27 - 21 victory in Christchurch on Saturday.
As has become customary between two New Zealand sides there was plenty of thrilling action throughout and the match was evenly poised until the Chiefs secured victory with a late Sam Cane try as Damian McKenzie (Tuwharetoa's Smiling Assassin from Gore) was the Chiefs' hero, contributing 12 points via a try, two conversions and a long-range penalty from the halfway mark as new first five-eighth Richie Mo'unga impressed for the Crusaders and scored a try, conversion and 3 penalties to finish the match with a 16-point haul as the opening half-hour was a scrappy affair as both sides tried to gain the ascendancy before Mo’unga opened the scoring for the Crusaders from the kicking tee as early as the first minute after the Chiefs were penalised at a scrum but the next points came 20 minutes later when Mo'unga added another three-pointer from the kicking tee before McKenzie opened the Chiefs' account with his penalty from 50 metres out but shortly afterwards, the Chiefs took the lead when Scott Stevenson ripped the ball from the grasp of David Kaetau Havili inside the Crusaders' 22 before crossing for the opening try as the Crusaders struck back just before half-time when, after pushing the Chiefs off the ball at a scrum, the ball was shifted to Mo'unga who got over for an easy try before he added the extras which meant the hosts led 13-8 at the break but the Chiefs took the lead five minutes into the second half when Seta Tamanivalu powered his way over for a try but five minutes later when David Havili made up for his earlier mistake when he scored in the right-hand corner to restore the home side's lead as Mo'unga then added another penalty to push his side further ahead but despite that score it was the Chiefs who finished stronger before McKenzie crossed for their third try in the 66th minute which he also converted before Cane sealed the result with his five-pointer from a rolling maul at a line-out three minutes before the final whistle as we go over to Sydney when the Waratahs dispatched the Reds for an opening win in 2016 in Super Rugby without ever hitting top gear, winning 30 - 10 moments before the Rebels started their Super Rugby campaign on a winning note with a 25 - 19 victory over the Force in Perth on Saturday followed by the match in Port Elizabeth as the Sharks got off to a winning start against the Kings 43 - 8 moments before the Stormers outscored the Bulls three tries to none to win 33 - 9 in their opening Super Rugby clash at Newlands on Saturday.
So that was Round 1 of the 2016 Super Rugby season and here are the matches for Round 2 as both the Kings and the Sunwolves have a bye:
Crusaders Vs Blues: AMI Stadium (Rugby League Park), Christchurch
Brumbies Vs Waratahs: GIO Stadium, Canberra
Chiefs Vs Lions: Waikato Stadium, Hamilton
Highlanders Vs Hurricanes: Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
Reds Vs Force: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Bulls Vs Rebels: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Cheetahs Vs Stormers: Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein
& the Sharks Vs Jaguares at Kings Park Stadium in Durban to end Round 2 of Super Rugby 2016.
But the Blues got their Super Rugby campaign off to a fine start when they beat the defending champs the Highlanders 33 - 31 in Auckland on Friday as the Highlanders are being widely tipped to retain their crown this season and they made a gallant attempt to continue where they left off last year, but it wasn’t to be, and although they outscored their hosts four tries to three, with two from Ben Smith (AKA Bender/Ben From Accounts) as they won’t get a try-scoring bonus-point under the tournament’s new rules as both sides deserve credit for making this the entertaining spectacle that it was, especially the Blues who seem rejuvenated under the guidance of new head coach Tana Umaga as he won his first game in charge but the Highlanders were fastest out of the blocks and their enterprising play was rewarded in the eighth minute when Ben Smith ran on to a pass from Aaron Smith and burst through a hole in the Blues defence before diving over for the opening try.
The Blues didn’t wait long to respond and they were soon level when Melani Nanai rounded off a move which started inside his own half as first five-eighth Ihaia West was the try’s architect with a perfectly weighted chip kick in which Tevita Li gathered close to the halfway line. He drew in the final defender before offloading to Nanai who got over for an easy try as West and Lima Sopoaga then traded penalties before Blake Gibson announced himself with a superb try. The flanker bashed his way through Ben Smith deep inside the Highlanders half before crashing over. West added the extras and soon made it 17 - 10 to the hosts with another three-pointer from the kicking tee but the Highlanders didn’t panic, however, and showed why they are the champions when Ben Smith put Teihorangi Walden (A Pakeha with a Maori name) into the clear inside the Blues’ 22.
Walden then sold the cover defence an outrageous dummy before dotting down. West landed another penalty in the 37th minute before 2015’s top try-scorer Waisake Naholo left his stamp on this match with a well-taken try as Aaron Smith spotted a hole in the Blues’ defence and launched a box kick which Naholo gathered from under the noses of two defenders before crossing the whitewash on the stroke of half-time.
The 2nd half was more subdued and the opening quarter was a scrappy affair. The first points of the half came in the 57th minute via a penalty from West which meant the Highlanders led 24-23 going into the final quarter, but West then gave his team the lead 5 minutes later when he slotted another penalty.
The visitors suffered a setback ten minutes later when winger Patrick Osborne was yellow carded for cleaning out illegally at a ruck and the Blues made full use of their numerical advantage when lock Patrick Tuipulotu crashed over after his side opted to kick for a lineout from the penalty deep inside the Highlanders’ 22 but the defending champions didn’t surrender though and a flowing move – in which several players handled in the build-up – in the 78th minute was rounded off by Ben Smith in the corner close to full-time, but it wasn’t enough to secure victory.
But the next match was between the Brumbies and last year's runners-up the Hurricanes as the Brumbies made light work of the Hurricanes (Although the Brumbies defence restricted the Hurricanes to 1 try but Phil Kearns (Ex Wallaby hooker and rugby commentator for Fox Sports) described the Hurricanes as being too fat, slow and unfit) in their Super Rugby opener, claiming a 52 - 10 bonus-point win in Canberra on Friday followed by newcomers the Jaguares of Argentina beat the Cheetahs by just a single point in their historic debut match when they turned around a 21-point deficit to win their first ever Super Rugby game 34 - 33 against the Cheetahs in a thrilling contest then a day later, all eyes were in Tokyo as fellow newcomers the Sunwolves of Japan played their 1st Super Rugby game against the Lions but the Lions sealed a 26 - 13 four-try victory but they made heavy weather of seeing off the Sunwolves in Tokyo on Saturday moments before the Chiefs headed to Christchurch to play the Crusaders as the Chiefs outscored the Crusaders 4 tries to 2 to claim a deserved 27 - 21 victory in Christchurch on Saturday.
As has become customary between two New Zealand sides there was plenty of thrilling action throughout and the match was evenly poised until the Chiefs secured victory with a late Sam Cane try as Damian McKenzie (Tuwharetoa's Smiling Assassin from Gore) was the Chiefs' hero, contributing 12 points via a try, two conversions and a long-range penalty from the halfway mark as new first five-eighth Richie Mo'unga impressed for the Crusaders and scored a try, conversion and 3 penalties to finish the match with a 16-point haul as the opening half-hour was a scrappy affair as both sides tried to gain the ascendancy before Mo’unga opened the scoring for the Crusaders from the kicking tee as early as the first minute after the Chiefs were penalised at a scrum but the next points came 20 minutes later when Mo'unga added another three-pointer from the kicking tee before McKenzie opened the Chiefs' account with his penalty from 50 metres out but shortly afterwards, the Chiefs took the lead when Scott Stevenson ripped the ball from the grasp of David Kaetau Havili inside the Crusaders' 22 before crossing for the opening try as the Crusaders struck back just before half-time when, after pushing the Chiefs off the ball at a scrum, the ball was shifted to Mo'unga who got over for an easy try before he added the extras which meant the hosts led 13-8 at the break but the Chiefs took the lead five minutes into the second half when Seta Tamanivalu powered his way over for a try but five minutes later when David Havili made up for his earlier mistake when he scored in the right-hand corner to restore the home side's lead as Mo'unga then added another penalty to push his side further ahead but despite that score it was the Chiefs who finished stronger before McKenzie crossed for their third try in the 66th minute which he also converted before Cane sealed the result with his five-pointer from a rolling maul at a line-out three minutes before the final whistle as we go over to Sydney when the Waratahs dispatched the Reds for an opening win in 2016 in Super Rugby without ever hitting top gear, winning 30 - 10 moments before the Rebels started their Super Rugby campaign on a winning note with a 25 - 19 victory over the Force in Perth on Saturday followed by the match in Port Elizabeth as the Sharks got off to a winning start against the Kings 43 - 8 moments before the Stormers outscored the Bulls three tries to none to win 33 - 9 in their opening Super Rugby clash at Newlands on Saturday.
So that was Round 1 of the 2016 Super Rugby season and here are the matches for Round 2 as both the Kings and the Sunwolves have a bye:
Crusaders Vs Blues: AMI Stadium (Rugby League Park), Christchurch
Brumbies Vs Waratahs: GIO Stadium, Canberra
Chiefs Vs Lions: Waikato Stadium, Hamilton
Highlanders Vs Hurricanes: Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
Reds Vs Force: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Bulls Vs Rebels: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Cheetahs Vs Stormers: Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein
& the Sharks Vs Jaguares at Kings Park Stadium in Durban to end Round 2 of Super Rugby 2016.
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