Following the Chiefs’ 29-20 triumph over the Reds in Hamilton on Saturday, Planet Rugby picks out five takeaways from the Super Rugby Pacific play-off action.
Great composure from the Chiefs
Although the Reds deserve plenty of credit for their gallant effort, the Chiefs‘ also deserve special praise for not losing their composure, especially in the game’s closing stages when the match was evenly poised.
The Chiefs have set this year’s Super Rugby Pacific competition alight with their enterprising style of play in which they scored tries aplenty and played the game at a fast pace with fine interplay between forwards and backs.
That was still evident throughout this game but with it being a play-off fixture, they were more circumspect in their approach and opted to kick for goal when the points were on offer. That tactic reaped reward in the end although they showed that they can till turn on the style and were rewarded with well-taken tries from Emoni Narawa and Pita Gus Sowakula.
⚫️ Shaun Stevenson with a fine line break and Emoni Narawa shows his class as he gets over for the Chiefs’ first try! #SuperRugbyPacific #CHIvRED pic.twitter.com/vOzEN7zJuI
— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) June 10, 2023
Tate McDermott wins the battle of the number nines
Both sides’ scrum-halves play crucial roles in the implementation of their respective teams’ game-plans and it showed in this fixture as the Chiefs’ Brad Weber and Tate McDermott of the Reds went head-to-head.
The duo were amongst the main protagonists as apart from being the link between forwards and backs, both were also in leadership roles with Weber being the Chiefs’ co-captain and McDermott the skipper of the Reds.
However, despite finishing on the losing side, the Wallaby outshone his All Blacks counterpart as McDermott held an edge on attack and defence, while his kicking out of hand was also superior to Weber’s. In the end, McDermott was one of the best players on the field while Weber was less influential and it was not a surprise when he was replaced by Cortez Ratima on the hour-mark.
Great physicality on display
From the outset these sides went at each other hammer and tongs and both teams showed they meant business as there was great physicality on display for the full 80 minutes.
There was plenty of big hits flying in, especially amongst the forwards where the likes of the Chiefs’ Brodie Retallick, Sam Cane, Samipeni Finau and Samisoni Taukei’aho, and the Reds’ Harry Wilson, Fraser McReight and Angus Blyth came to the fore with excellent defensive efforts.
The physical nature to this game was constant throughout and despite tiring as the match progressed, the players on both sides continued to play the game at a high intensity with replacements like Luke Jacobson and George Dyer of the Chiefs and the Reds’ Zane Nonggorr also catching the eye in that department.
Reds up to the challenge
Although they finished on the losing side, the Brisbane-based outfit can hold their heads high as they were up for the challenge and gave a good account of themselves for long periods of this match.
Despite being the only side to beat the Chiefs this year – in their Round 12 league match in New Plymouth – the Reds were overwhelming underdogs as the men from Hamilton fielded their strongest possible matchday squad for this encounter.
The Reds did not hold back, however, and put in a courageous effort which had the home team on the back foot for most of the match. There was genuine panic amongst the Chiefs faithful at the FMG Stadium during the latter part of the match when Brad Thorn’s troops were holding a slender 20-19 lead before a Damian McKenzie penalty and Sowakula’s late converted try secured the win for the hosts.
Despite the result, @redsrugby have plenty to be proud of 💪#CHIvRED #SuperRugbyPacific #WelcomeToYourSuperStage pic.twitter.com/Zoz7cyeNGK
— Super Rugby Pacific (@SuperRugby) June 10, 2023
Chiefs veterans lead the way on defence
The vistors came out firing and if truth be told they held a slight edge for most of the match, and although the Chiefs had most of the possession the Reds had most of the territory.
The visitors threw everything at their opponents but although the Chiefs conceded several penalties, they kept their defensive shape especially during the early stages of the first half and midway through the second period when the Reds had them under pressure.
Although the Reds eventually made much more tackles than their hosts, the Chiefs’ defence was severely tested and leading the way in that department were All Blacks veterans Cane and Retallick, who finished with 23 and 15 tackles respectively. The duo’s defensive contributions should not be underestimated in the bigger scheme of things and the rest of the Chiefs players will be looking to follow their excellent example during the rest of the play-offs.
READ MORE: WATCH: Shaun Stevenson turns to creator in CRUCIAL Chiefs try against Reds
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