Super Rugby review: Wins for Hurricanes, Lions, Crusaders & Rebels as Sharks and Waratahs tie
Sunday 4 March 2018 16:26, UK
Hurricanes maul Jaguares 34-9, Lions beat Bulls 49-35, Crusaders continued their unbeaten start with a bonus-point 45-28 win over Stormers, while Jack Maddocks scored a hat-trick in Rebels 37-17 win over Sun Wolves as Sharks and Waratahs tie 24-24.
Los Jaguares 9-34 Hurricanes
The Wellington Hurricanes scored five tries to none as they picked up their first points of the season with a 34-9 mauling of Argentina's Jaguares at Velez Sarsfield on Saturday.
The five tries were enough to secure a bonus point as the 2016 champions left their hosts with a third straight loss - their worst start in three seasons in the competition.
Hurricanes fly-half Beauden Barrett, making his first start after coming off the bench in the 21-19 loss to the Bulls in South Africa last weekend, converted three tries while his replacement Jackson Garden-Bachop slotted a penalty.
Winger Ben Lam and centre Ngani Laumape scored first-half tries but fly-half Nicolas Sanchez kept the Argentine side within sight, his third penalty in the 47th minute edging them within three points after the visitors had led 12-6 at half-time.
However, centre Matt Proctor put a damper on any hopes the Jaguares had of turning the match their way with the third try after 53 minutes in a show of pace and power that was a mark of the visiting backs.
Bulls 35-49 Lions
Ill-discipline from the home side helped the Lions maintain their 100 per cent start to the new Super Rugby season with a bonus-point 49-35 South African derby victory over the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.
The Johannesburg-based side, beaten finalists in the competition in the previous two seasons, scored tries through props Ruan Dreyer and Jacques Van Rooyen, lock Marvin Orie and hooker Malcolm Marx as their pack dominated in the set-pieces and driving maul.
They also managed a penalty try, while wing Sylvian Mahuza and scrumhalf Ross Cronje crossed over in what was a dominant second-half performance.
The Bulls, who played for almost 10 minutes with 13 players following yellow cards in quick succession for prop Conraad Van Vuuren and loose-forward Nick de Jager, scored their tries through wings John-Ben Kotze and Travis Ismaiel, centre Handre Pollard and prop Lizo Gqoboka.
The home side were in the game at the 50-minute mark with the scores level at 21-21, but boosted by their numerical advantage, the Lions pulled away in the final half-hour to record a third successive victory this season and inflict a first defeat on the Bulls.
Sharks 24-24 Waratahs
Waratahs' fly-half Bernard Foley kicked a conversion from the touchline four minutes from time to earn a late draw against the Sharks after replacement scrumhalf Mitch Short dotted down in the corner.
Both sides scored three tries, with centre Lukhanyo Am grabbing a brace for the Sharks and a single from fly-half Robert du Preez.
The Waratahs other scores came via scrumhalf Jake Gordon and back-rower Michael Hooper, the latter racing clear after the Sharks Keegan Daniel had tried to take a quick throw to himself, but only succeeded in knocking the ball on.
Crusaders 45-28 Stormers
In Christchurch, defending champions Crusaders raced into a 26-0 lead after 18 minutes and held on to beat the Cape Stormers 45-28 to continue their unbeaten start to the Super Rugby season.
Winger George Bridge, hooker Corey Taylor, flanker Billy Harmon and scrumhalf Bryn Hall scored tries as the Crusaders made a spectacular start against a Stormers side which struggled at the set piece early on.
The Stormers rallied in the second and third quarters, despite a second try from Bridge, to cut the lead to 31-21 in the third quarter and this tested the mettle of the eight-time champions.
However, the Crusaders responded with tries from winger Seta Tamanivalu and fly-half Richie Mo'unga to record their second win of their season and retain their unbeaten record in 12 matches against the Stormers in Christchurch.
The Crusaders threw caution to the wind early on, even opting to kick passes inside their own 22 in the first quarter.
Not everything came off, but they were able to exploit early defensive lapses by the Stormers to score tries through Bridge in the sixth minute, Taylor in the 11th, Harmon in the 16th and Hall in the 18th.
It wasn't until the 31st minute that Stormers enjoyed a period of possession and they posted a try through J.C. Janse van Rensburg. But the Crusaders extended their lead to 31-7 at halftime with Bridge's second try.
A strong start to the second-half by the Stormers produced tries to Wilco Louw and J. D. Schickerling which cut the lead to 10 points, but it wasn't enough.
"Full credit to the Stormers, they had a very, very tight game last week and they showed all the fight they have in their team," said Crusaders captain Sam Whitelock. "They really put us under pressure in the second-half."
Sunwolves 17- Rebels 37
Meanwhile in Tokyo, winger Jack Maddocks scored three tries as the Melbourne Rebels beat Japan's Sunwolves 37-17 to start the season with back-to-back wins for the first time in their history.
The teams were locked 10-10 at half-time, but following their 45-19 win over the Queensland Reds last weekend, the Rebels scored 27 second-half points to complete a convincing victory.
