Northern Edition

Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
New Zealand New Zealand
France France

Brumbies bounce back dramatically to hand Hurricanes first loss of season

Noah Lolesio of the Brumbies scores in the corner. Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images

It was a hungry Brumbies outfit that greeted the undefeated Hurricanes in Canberra, clearly out with a point to prove after a record loss to the Blues in their last outing.

ADVERTISEMENT

Tamati Tua was awarded Man of the Match for his barnstorming performance but there were no shortage of superb outings for the hosts who subjected the Hurricanes to their first loss of the season.

Having dominated the collision area throughout the season, the Hurricanes found themselves back-pedalling on their opening defensive stand of the game.

Video Spacer

Sam Whitelock on the future of New Zealand rugby locks

Video Player is loading.
Current Time 0:00
Duration 0:38
Loaded: 0%
Stream Type LIVE
Remaining Time 0:38
 
1x
    • Chapters
    • descriptions off, selected
    • captions off, selected
    • en (Main), selected
    Video Spacer

    Sam Whitelock on the future of New Zealand rugby locks

    Sam Whitelock feels confident about what’s to come. Watch the full interview on RugbyPass TV now.

    Watch now

    The front foot ball for the Brumbies was capitalised on when they were awarded a penalty and opted for a lineout drive, which the Hurricanes managed to defuse after a mammoth wrestle. The defensive effort had drawn in enough players though for Noah Lolesio to be unmarked on the wing and one pass was all that was needed for the playmaker to score the opening points of the game.

    The Hurricanes wouldn’t entertain anything other than a strong territory advantage after that opening try, quickly pressing into the Brumbies’ 22 and launching multiple driving maul attempts until a fumbled delivery from TJ Perenara caught the defence off guard and allowed Xavier Numia to find the ball and dive over the line.

    The scoreboard would continue to tick over moments later when Tamati Tua looked up and saw a hooker and a lock in front of him, accelerating through the minuscule gap and shrugging the defenders before burning TJ Perenara to score the third try of the game in the 15th minute.

    Tua was making metres again shortly after play resumed, pushing play back into the Hurricanes’ half off the restart.

    ADVERTISEMENT

    That field position allowed the Brumbies to maintain their ambition and the hosts continued to win the collision area, making metres and recycling the ball swiftly, all putting immense pressure on the Hurricanes’ defence.

    That pressure resulted in another break and another try, this time to Ollie Sapsford. The winger found space on the outside as if the Brumbies were playing with a one-man advantage, with the Brumbies finding plenty of reward against an uncharacteristically shaky Hurricanes defence.

    Things went from bad to worse for the visitors when hooker James O’Reilly went down with a head knock, making way for young Raymond Tuputupu and causing further concern after the team’s premier hooker, Asafo Aumua, went down with an MCL injury last weekend.

    Related

    Charlie Cale made a nuisance of himself defending the Hurricanes’ lineout but the 21-year-old hooker found his target the second time around and the Wellingtonians drove closer and closer to the line with every phase. Xavier Numia again popped up at the right place and right time, opportunistically diving over the line through a gap beside the ruck.

    ADVERTISEMENT

    The Brumbies had managed to avoid the wrath of the Hurricanes’ scrum until the 35th minute, getting the ball out to Cale swiftly to keep play moving. But, it was a massive task for Allan Alaalatoa in his return from injury to fight the power of Xavier Numia, and the young gun eventually got the better of the veteran Wallaby to earn a penalty and win more strong field position for his team.

    The back and forth continued and while both teams continued to prove dangerous, the score would remain 24-12 at halftime.

    An offside penalty handed the Brumbies a chance to keep the scoreboard rolling to start the second half, with Noah Lolesio obliging with the three points.

    A mercurial run from Ruben Love on a kick return ignited the Hurricanes’ counter-attack just a minute later, with the ball then finding Salesi Rayasi who hit the line with pace and delivered a determined offload which allowed his team to realize the overlap created and put Jordie Barrett over the line untouched.

    Alaalatoa was replaced at halftime but the Hurricanes’ scrum dominance continued. Meanwhile, Tom Wright was igniting play with pirouettes and pace before his opposite Ruben Love re-entered the action and caused some havoc of his own.

    The scores remained locked at 27-19 as the two sides went at it, exchanging blows and defusing attacking threats.

    The pressure the Brumbies continued to apply forced the Hurricanes into some errors that hadn’t been seen much so far in 2024, and killed momentum before the ‘Canes could capitalize on it.

    The scrum was far less dominant once the reserve unit took the field for the Hurricanes and the Brumbies made huge plays at lineout time, securing the win with another steal late. Final score: 27-19.

    ADVERTISEMENT

    Boks Office | Episode 37 | Six Nations Round 4 Review

    Cape Town | Leg 2 | Day 2 | HSBC Challenger Series 2025 | Full Day Replay

    Gloucester-Hartpury vs Bristol Bears | PWR 2024/25 | Full Match Replay

    Boks Office | Episode 36 | Six Nations Round 3 Review

    Why did Scotland's Finn Russell take the crucial kick from the wrong place? | Whistle Watch

    England A vs Ireland A | Full Match Replay

    Kubota Spears vs Shizuoka BlueRevs | JRLO 2024/2025 | Full Match Replay

    Watch now: Lomu - The Lost Tapes

    Trending on RugbyPass

    Comments

    4 Comments
    J
    Jasyn 333 days ago

    Unfortunately when you lose by far the two form players this season in Roigard and Aumua, you're left replacing two game changing Tanks with a couple of pea-shooters.

    Which is also about the speed of TJs pass.

    A
    Andrew 333 days ago

    Tamati Tua. …the Taniwha NPC midfielder. Ollie Sapsford, Hawkes Bay NPC midfielder…doing well

    Load More Comments

    Join free and tell us what you really think!

    Sign up for free
    ADVERTISEMENT

    Latest Features

    Comments on RugbyPass

    E
    EllenMoody 1 hour ago
    Great moments in Lions tour history – JPR’s drop goal and the All Blacks' brutal revenge

    A Crypto Theft Victim's Journey: How Morphohack Cyber Service Restored My Assets

    By: Ellen Moody, Crypto Investor and Advocate

    I was left reeling after discovering that my digital wallet had been compromised, resulting in the loss of 39.5 Ethereum. This devastating experience left me desperate for a solution. I reached out to Morphohack Cyber Service. Their team responded with exceptional professionalism and expertise, promptly launching a comprehensive analysis of the blockchain network to track the stolen funds.

    Their specialists employed cutting-edge blockchain analytics tools to follow the digital footprint, providing detailed explanations of their methods. It was evident that they possessed a profound understanding of hacker strategies and vulnerabilities. Despite encountering obstacles, they persevered, meticulously tracking the ETH as it navigated various wallets and tumblers.

    Throughout the process, Morphohack Cyber Service maintained seamless communication, providing regular updates on the case. Ultimately, their efforts culminated in the successful recovery of 37 ETH, seized from the wallets holding my stolen assets.

    I’m profoundly grateful for Morphohack Cyber Service expertise and genuine commitment to helping victims of crypto theft. Their specialized knowledge of blockchain forensics is unmatched. I highly recommend their services to anyone facing a similar situation. In the complex world of crypto, they are truly a trusted ally.

    Need Help Recovering Stolen Crypto? Contact Morphohack Cyber Service:

    Email: Morphohack@cyberservices.com

    Info@morphohackcyber.com

    Morphohackcyber.com

    1 Go to comments
    J
    JWH 2 hours ago
    'Matches between Les Bleus and the All Blacks are rarely for the faint-hearted.'

    Do you hear yourself? Do you have any concept of world view? Have you tried looking into why people call Ireland ‘arrogant’? Obviously not.


    We started calling you arrogant when you called our captain a ‘shit Richie McCaw’. In New Zealand. On our turf. Don’t think that kind of behaviour really calls for respect, does it.


    NZ don’t really talk ourselves up, if anything the rugby does it for us. No kiwi goes in the media and says: ‘We are gonna win the RWC’. However, I have found many instance of IRISH media saying that the Irish should win, without a doubt. THAT is disrespectful.


    The All Blacks have played good rugby, even some of the best rugby ever, at many points in history, but I don’t think you could find a single instance of one of those players, or the NZ media, saying that they should whitewash their opponents. Ever.


    Now, onto your analysis. Ireland DID choke the QF. They beat the champions, they were ranked first coming into it, a lot of players at the peaks of their powers. Its hard to say that they didn’t choke. Obviously, their preparation was just not as good as NZ, and thats all there really is to it.


    If Ireland had repsected that ABs team and that QF more, maybe they would’ve prepared properly for it and won. But they didn’t.


    Maybe if Ireland had won their QF last RWC, they wouldn’t have to be in the same pool as SA and Scotland. I mean, its called a draw for a reason. NZ got third last RWC, so of course they should get a reasonable pool, and they were ranked pretty highly too. If you want to talk about easy pools, look no further than Pool 3 with England, Australia, Fiji, and Georgia I think?


    Now, obviously you don’t remember how that QF ended, so I’ll go ahead and rectify that. Ireland reclaimed the ball off kickoff and marched for 20ish phases into the opposition half. Savea then won a turnover, but the referee refused to give it, so play went on. Finally, at the NZ 22, after not giving up a single penatly in 25 phases of hard defense, Sam Whitelock, the most capped All Black of all time, wins the game with an incredible steal.


    Now, NZ players having a go at Ireland. Do you cry when you get hit after making the first swing? We all know Sexton is a prick on the field, its just the truth. And Ioane never backs down from a clash, so he thought he should humble a player who has never won an international knockout game who thought he was all that. Don’t really see the issue, its poetic justice really.

    77 Go to comments
    TRENDING
    TRENDING Departing Quins boss Billy Millard in talks over huge Test job Departing Quins boss Billy Millard in talks over huge Test job
    Search