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'Signing of the decade': New Zealand's fullback riches on show as Highlanders' recruit stars

Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens of the Highlanders. (Photo by Joe Allison/Getty Images)

Round one of Super Rugby Pacific saw the emergence of New Zealand’s next crop of fullbacks with Chay Fihaki, Zarn Sullivan and Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens all scoring doubles.

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New Highlanders recruit Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens tore up Moana Pasifika with a dazzling performance in the No 15 jersey, scoring two tries in the 35-20 win.

His performance lead Otago Daily Times to describe him as a jackpot signing from the Blues. Hayden Meikle wrote he “might be the best signing the Highlanders have made in a decade” after his club debut.

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The Taranaki-product scored the game’s first try with some shifty fullback close to the line. Another powerful carry by the fullback helped lay the platform for the Highlanders’ second which was finished by Saula Ma’u from a short ball by halfback Folau Fakatava.

Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens was difficult to tackle all night, beating 10 defenders on his 14 carries as he added some spark to the Highlanders’ attack.

After Moana Pasifika took an unexpected 21-14 lead, it was the Highlanders’ fullback latching onto a gem of a pass by Rhys Patchell from a set-piece play to score a blistering try. In open space the 22-year-old had too much speed for the last man in cover to level proceedings.

The Highlanders’ No 15 was a sensation in his first start for the new club, but he wasn’t the only fullback to star on the opening weekend.

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At the Blues Zarn Sullivan scored a double as well, although Sullivan’s finishes were relatively easier, while at the Crusaders Chay Fihaki announced himself as a genuine option at fullback as well.

During the second-half comeback after trailing 27-10 at half-time, Fihaki produced a stunner from a planned play from the goal line restart.

From an inside line near the ruck the fullback burst up the middle and showed a turn of pace to split the backfield defenders Shaun Stevenson and Josh Ioane.

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The explosive try was Fihaki’s second of the night after earlier capitalising on the smart work of Dallas McLeod and Rivez Reihana inside to open up the Chiefs’ defence.

For the Hurricanes Ruben Love was equally damaging producing two line breaks, including the initial break to set-up debutant Jordi Viljoen.

With Will Jordan out for the Super Rugby Pacific season and Beauden Barrett currently playing Japan, concerns around who could wear the All Blacks No 15 jersey will subside quickly if these performances continue.

Last year’s breakout star Shaun Stevenson of the Chiefs had his classy moments with two try assists, but it spoke volumes to the depth in New Zealand rugby when other young fullbacks stole the spotlight on the opening weekend.

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4 Comments
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Albert 300 days ago

*Ben Smith, *the decision to grab Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens has been amazing for Highlands. To see talented full back/wing combinations & moves New Zealand’s rugby is in good hands….Brilliant start!!

c
christopher 300 days ago

As a Scotland fan but watch a hell of a lot of NZ rugby from afar, Jesus the talent line never stops producing. Full back alone, Mckenzie (likely to be 10), Barrett ( Beauden), Jordan and then you add in Shaun Stevenson, Zarn Sullivan, Ruben Love, Chay Fihaki and Jacob Ratimaitavuki- Kneepkens, bloody hell Razor will have some hard hard decisions come end of June if most of these lads stay fit and play consistently good rugby. I genuinely believe Shaun Stevenson with an elite level head coach at international level will be like a nuclear weapon for the ABs, but if he’s not a started due to a certain Will Jordan then that fellas not to bad is he himself. Most of those lads can also play more than one position also and play them well. Scotland will always be my team but man I’m excited to see how Razor gets that black Jersey firing again in 2024 and beyond.

I
Isaac 300 days ago

the crusaders full black let in tries himself if it wasnt for josh iaone we would of dominated

A
Andrew 300 days ago

Shooters the man.

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JW 2 hours ago
Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

I rated Lowe well enough to be an AB. Remember we were picking the likes of George Bridge above such players so theres no disputing a lot of bad decisions have been made by those last two coaches. Does a team like the ABs need a finicky winger who you have to adapt and change a lot of your style with to get benefit from? No, not really. But he still would have been a basic improvement on players like even Savea at the tail of his career, Bridge, and could even have converted into the answer of replacing Beauden at the back. Instead we persisted with NMS, Naholo, Havili, Reece, all players we would have cared even less about losing and all because Rieko had Lowe's number 11 jersey nailed down.


He was of course only 23 when he decided to leave, it was back in the beggining of the period they had started retaining players (from 2018 onwards I think, they came out saying theyre going to be more aggressive at some point). So he might, all of them, only just missed out.


The main point that Ed made is that situations like Lowe's, Aki's, JGP's, aren't going to happen in future. That's a bit of a "NZ" only problem, because those players need to reach such a high standard to be chosen by the All Blacks, were as a country like Ireland wants them a lot earlier like that. This is basically the 'ready in 3 years' concept Ireland relied on, versus the '5 years and they've left' concept' were that player is now ready to be chosen by the All Blacks (given a contract to play Super, ala SBW, and hopefully Manu).


The 'mercenary' thing that will take longer to expire, and which I was referring to, is the grandparents rule. The new kids coming through now aren't going to have as many gp born overseas, so the amount of players that can leave with a prospect of International rugby offer are going to drop dramatically at some point. All these kiwi fellas playing for a PI, is going to stop sadly.


The new era problem that will replace those old concerns is now French and Japanese clubs (doing the same as NRL teams have done for decades by) picking kids out of school. The problem here is not so much a national identity one, than it is a farm system where 9 in 10 players are left with nothing. A stunted education and no support in a foreign country (well they'll get kicked out of those countries were they don't in Australia).


It's the same sort of situation were NZ would be the big guy, but there weren't many downsides with it. The only one I can think was brought up but a poster on this site, I can't recall who it was, but he seemed to know a lot of kids coming from the Islands weren't really given the capability to fly back home during school xms holidays etc. That is probably something that should be fixed by the union. Otherwise getting someone like Fakatava over here for his last year of school definitely results in NZ being able to pick the cherries off the top but it also allows that player to develop and be able to represent Tonga and under age and possibly even later in his career. Where as a kid being taken from NZ is arguably going to be worse off in every respect other than perhaps money. Not going to develop as a person, not going to develop as a player as much, so I have a lotof sympathy for NZs case that I don't include them in that group but I certainly see where you're coming from and it encourages other countries to think they can do the same while not realising they're making a much worse experience/situation.

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