Hurricanes vs Highlanders live updates, Super Rugby Pacific
Live updates of the Super Rugby Pacific clash between the Hurricanes and the Highlanders.
Hurricanes team to face Highlanders
First-five Brett Cameron has been named on the bench for his first match of the season, seven months after tearing his ACL.
Cameron was set to miss the entire season, but makes a timely return as the Hurricanes look for a third straight win.
The Hurricanes have made mass changes in their forward pack with Xavier Numia and Pasilio Tosi named at prop, and Zach Gallagher at lock, while there has been a rotation in the loose forwards with Brad Shields starting at blindside, moving Brayden Iose to No 8 and Peter Lakai to openside.
Bailyn Sullivan starts on the wing, with confirmation Kini Naholo has torn his ACL.
Hurricanes: 1. Xavier Numia 2. Asafo Aumua 3. Pasilio Tosi 4. Zach Gallagher 5. Isaia Walker-Leawere 6. Brad Shields (cc) 7. Peter Lakai 8. Brayden Iose 9. Cam Roigard 10. Ruben Love 11. Ngatungane Punivai 12. Riley Higgins 13. Billy Proctor (cc) 14. Bailyn Sullivan 15. Callum Harkin.
Bench: 16. Raymond Tuputupu 17. Pouri Rakete-Stones , 18. Tevita Mafileo 19. Will Tucker 20. Du'Plessis Kirifi (cc) 21. Eretara Enari 22. Brett Cameron 23. Fatafehi Fineanganofo.
Unavailable: Kini Naholo (knee, season), Tyrel Lomax (ankle) Harry Godfrey (lower leg), Caleb Delany (back)
Highlanders team to face Hurricanes
After the bye last week, Jamie Joseph has made mass changes to his side as they fight to stay in the hunt for a spot in the Super Rugby Pacific playoffs.
In the pack, Jack Taylor swaps places with Soane Vikena to start at hooker, while Mitch Dunshea slots in at lock alongside Fabian Holland. Sean Withy moves from openside flanker to No 8, allowing Veveni Lasaqa to start.
In the backs, Folau Fakatava starts at halfback alongside Taine Robinson at first-five, while Jona Nareki and Tanielu Tele'a have overcome injuries to take their places on the left wing and centre respectively.
Highlanders: 1. Ethan de Groot (cc) 2. Jack Taylor 3. Saula Ma'u 4. Fabian Holland 5. Mitch Dunshea 6. Te Kamaka Howden 7. Vevemi Lasaqa 8. Sean Withy 9. Folau Fakatava 10. Taine Robinson 11. Jona Nareki 12. Timoci Tavatavanawai (cc) 13. Tanielu Tele'a 14. Jonah Lowe 15. Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens.
Bench: 16. Soane Vikena 17. Josh Bartlett 18. Sefo Kautai 19. Oliver Haig 20. Michael Loft 21. Adam Lennox 22. Cam Millar 23. Thomas Umaga-Jensen.
Unavailable: Caleb Tangitau (groin), James Arscott (shoulder), Nikora Broughton (knee), Sosefo Kautai (neck), Tanielu Tele'a, Finn Hurley (quad, season), Hayden Michaels (hamstring, season), Ajay Faleafaga (hand, season).
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Otago Daily Times
11 hours ago
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About 1881 he was introduced to rugby football by his cousins at Ōtākou — Jack Taiaroa, who was to become a prominent member of the first New Zealand rugby team in 1884, and Riki Taiaroa, who later joined Ellison in the touring Native team of 1888-89. In 1882, Tom was sent to Te Aute College, Hawke's Bay, where he played for the senior team in 1883 and 1884. His first international honours came with the New Zealand Native Football Team, a professional side, which toured Great Britain and Australia in 1888-89. Initially a forward and later a wing, Ellison played half-back for Pōneke in 1891, and from that experience developed the wing-forward, or flanker, position to block interference with passing from the base of the scrum. The system was quickly adopted throughout New Zealand; it was superseded by the eight-man scrum in 1932. In 1893, Ellison captained the first official New Zealand team and he proposed that the uniform be a black jersey with silver fern monogram — this was similar to the old Native team uniform — and in 1901 it became the familiar All Black uniform. In 1902 he published The Art of Rugby Football , an early rugby coaching manual. Eventually, Ellison took a keen interest in Kāi Tahu land claims: he was appointed an interpreter in the Native Land Court in 1886 and stood three times for the Southern Maori seat in Parliament. From 1891 he worked as a solicitor and, from 1902, as a barrister in the Wellington law firm Brandon, Hislop and Johnston, he was admitted to the Bar, one of the first Māori to attain that distinction. He became a familiar figure commuting to work from Eastbourne in one of the first motor cars seen in Wellington. Ellison died a young man in 1904 and was buried at Ōtākou. 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Ultimately, he just loved the brotherhood, the team camaraderie, the banter, the laughs and he really got a kick out of his team winning and his team-mates doing well. I think perhaps the coaches got a laugh, too, out of coaching my son, as he was pretty entertaining. He went away to his Māori boys boarding school in the North Island a few years ago now, as he is in his last year. He continued to play the game at school, and I just assumed it was expected that he did. He naturally got taller and leaned out, he trained a bit at school and kept in it. He took on basketball too and loves the game but still played rugby. He said his life would flash before him on a Saturday as massive boys with killer attitudes would come running at him. In some regards, I am glad I have never had to watch this rugby warfare with my beautiful boy in the middle of it. Through all his rugby trials and tribulations, he said the one thing he wanted was to make his dad proud and get that 1st XV cap, and he has done it. In two weeks' time he gets his wish, presented with his cap by his pōua (grandfather) at his school. So, with that, my son gets to acknowledge the journey in the game, the injuries, the wins, the losses, the growth, his brotherhood, his tūpuna, his dad and, finally, his cousin Taiaroa, also a descendant of these Ōtākou rugby legends, whose amazing rugby talent has been halted by cancer. This is my son's salute.