Latest news with #BRUvHUR
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Brumbies into Super Rugby semi-final with 'Canes win
The ACT Brumbies have booked a Super Rugby Pacific semi-final berth with a gutsy 35-28 playoffs win over the Hurricanes at GIO Stadium. The home side's forward pack were prolific, with hooker Billy Pollard scoring a double, in the Brumbies' five-tries-to-four victory over the Wellingtonians on Saturday night. The Brumbies will now need to make history by beating the ladder-topping Chiefs in Hamilton next weekend to avoid a fourth straight semi-final exit against a New Zealand club. MAGIC ball from Rob Valetini to Tom Wright 🪄#SuperRugbyPacific #BRUvHUR — Super Rugby Pacific (@SuperRugby) June 7, 2025 No Australian side has won a knock-out game in New Zealand in the almost 30-year history of the competition. The tried-and-tested methods of rolling mauls and pick-and-drives paid dividends for the Brumbies. After the Hurricanes opened the scoring through fullback Ruben Love, a Brumbies maul from a lineout in opposition territory slowly but surely rolled over the tryline, with Pollard the man to dot down through a sea of bodies. Fatafehi Fineanganofo hit back for the visitors before Brumbies captain Allan Alaalatoa burrowed over after a succession of pick-and-drives on the Hurricanes' line. With three minutes left in the first half, the Brumbies opted not to take a penalty goal from right in front, instead chancing their arms again with another lineout. Their gamble paid off with Pollard managing to break off the blindside and dive onto the tryline to give the Brumbies a seven-point lead at the break. Double trouble from Billy Pollard 💪#SuperRugbyPacific #BRUvHUR — Super Rugby Pacific (@SuperRugby) June 7, 2025 The sides traded seven-pointers in the second half, with a try to Brumbies fullback Tom Wright cancelled out by one from Bailyn Sullivan. Veteran Brumbies prop James Slipper scored with another pick-and-drive before Hurricanes substitute Pasilio Tosi narrowed the gap to one try to ramp up the tension in the dying minutes. The Hurricanes burst into the Brumbies half through a Callum Harkin linebreak in the final minute but Luke Reimer stepped up for the home side to steal the pill and settle the victory. The defending champion Blues' last-gasp win over the Chiefs earlier in the night heaped the pressure on the third-placed Brumbies, who knew a loss would consign them to bowing out before the semi-finals for the first time since 2018. Instead it was the fourth-placed Hurricanes who reached the end of the road in their season.
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Brumbies suffer costly Super Rugby loss to Hurricanes
The ACT Brumbies have blown a golden chance to maintain contact with the Super Rugby Pacific ladder leaders after an upset loss to the Hurricanes in Canberra. The third-placed Brumbies hadn't lost at home to the Hurricanes, who sit eighth on the table, since 2017 and had won five of their past six clashes. But they couldn't catch the men from Wellington, going down in a thriller 35-29 on Saturday. Burly Hurricanes winger Kini Naholo steamrolled his rivals to score two tries in a stand-out performance in the capital. Not gonna stop him 😤#SuperRugbyPacific #BRUvHUR — Super Rugby Pacific (@SuperRugby) April 26, 2025 Australia's top-ranked side started well, with skipper Allan Alaalatoa burrowing his way over the line in the eighth minute. But in keeping with the theme of the night, each time they scored the visitors answered with a try of their own. Centre Billy Proctor was first across the tryline, running on to a massive cut-out pass from Callum Harkin, followed up by Ngantungane Punivai to give the Hurricanes a 10-5 lead. Brumbies flanker Luke Reimer then sniffed out a try, only for Naholo to hit back three minutes later after some neat lead-up work by Ruben Love and Harkin, with the Hurricanes taking a 20-15 lead into halftime. With the Brumbies only managing 32 per cent of possession and 23 per cent of territory, they had to work for every point, but newly re-signed Len Ikitau came up trumps with the first try of the second half. But Naholo used his speed and brute strength to cut a swathe through the Brumbies defence, and his team were out to an eight-point lead, which soon became 13 thanks to Punivai's second. In typical Brumbies fashion they kept coming and were eventually rewarded with winger Andy Muirhead crossing in the corner in the 70th minute, with Noah Lolesio adding the extras from the sideline. The home side had plenty of time to score the winning try, but a series of poor decisions and errors proved costly.
