Hurricanes shatter Moana dreams and send Blues into Super Rugby playoffs
SYDNEY - The Wellington Hurricanes shattered Moana Pasifika's dreams of a maiden Super Rugby Pacific playoff campaign with a crushing 64-12 victory on Saturday that sent the defending champion Auckland Blues into next week's quarter-finals instead.
The Hurricanes cemented fourth place in the final standings and will travel to Canberra next Saturday to play the ACT Brumbies, while the Blues, who earlier beat the New South Wales Waratahs 46-6, will visit the table-topping Waikato Chiefs.
In the other opening-round playoff, the 12-times champion Canterbury Crusaders will host the Queensland Reds, who conclude the regular season fixtures when they take on the Fijian Drua in Brisbane later on Saturday.
Moana had hoped to be there too on the back of a breakout season but even redoubtable skipper Ardie Savea was unable to inspire them to the bonus-point victory they needed to edge out the Blues and claim the sixth and last playoff spot.
Number eight Semisi Tupou Ta'eiloa gave Moana the perfect start at Wellington Stadium with a try after six minutes but Hurricanes were 14-7 up before a quarter of an hour had expired.
Hooker Jacob Devery went over on the back of a rolling maul before flanker Devan Flanders showed his footballing skills with a chip and chase for the second try.
Savea grabbed a couple of turnovers but it only delayed the inevitable as Hurricanes scrumhalf Cam Roigard went over from an intercept and centre Peter Umaga-Jensen rampaged through the Moana defence to give the home side a 28-7 halftime lead.
Umaga-Jensen barged over for his second try 10 minutes after the break before Raymond Tuputupu, Pouri Rakete-Stones, Billy Proctor, Ereatara Enari and Tjay Clarke completed the 10-try rout.
"Really pleasing, not only that we got the result, but that we played the way we did going into the finals," said Hurricanes co-captain Du'Plessis Kirifi.
"From next week on, you've got to just start again. Start again and go hard."
Savea, who scored a consolation try against his old team in the 65th minute off a catch-and-drive, expressed his pride in what Moana had achieved this year.
"We're not satisfied," he said. "Our goal was to win the thing and make top six, but that wasn't meant to be."
The Blues earlier ended the slender post-season hopes of the Waratahs by running in seven tries in a bonus-point victory at Eden Park to extend their winning streak over the Sydney-based club to 11 matches.
Centre Rieko Ioane scored a hat-trick and winger Mark Tele'a two tries on the back of an attack skilfully marshalled by their fellow All Black Beauden Barrett as the Blues gave the Waratahs a lesson in clinical finishing.
"We just wanted to play shackle-free and have some fun and I think we did that tonight," said Ioane, who joined Doug Howlett as the Blues' all time leading try-scorer with 55.
"We knew how crucial the bonus point was, and to hold them to no tries was awesome."
On Friday, the Chiefs locked up top spot in the standings and home advantage throughout the playoffs with a 41-21 victory over the Otago Highlanders and the Crusaders beat the Brumbies 33-31 to win the shootout for second. REUTERS
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