Super Rugby’s new normal: Hurricanes on a high, Crusaders in a rut

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — The new normal in Super Rugby Pacific — with the unbeaten Hurricanes at the top of the standings and the winless Crusaders at the bottom — may be disorienting for fans of both teams and disconcerting for the other clubs in between.

Supporters of the Christchurch-based Crusaders are as accustomed to success after 11 championship seasons, just as followers of the Wellington-based Hurricanes are familiar with disappointment. The Hurricanes’ only Super Rugby title came in 2016, though they first reached the final in 2006.

The Hurricanes are 5-0 heading into a sixth-round match Saturday against the Dunedin-based Highlanders. Their streak includes a 14-10 win over the Crusaders in Christchurch.

The Crusaders are 0-5 ahead of Friday’s re-match against the Hamilton-based Chiefs, the second time these 2023 grand final rivals have played in 2024. The Chiefs won 33-29 when the teams met in Round 1.

The teams’ fortunes have diverged sharply since then; the Chiefs are 4-1 and second in the standings behind the Hurricanes. The Crusaders can’t buy a win.

In the Crusaders’ favor Friday, the Chiefs are resting flyhalf Damian McKenzie, who has provided the spark for their attacking play all season and they seem to lose cohesion when he leaves the field.

On the other hand, the Crusaders have had another major injury blow with the loss of center David Havili and will field their third captain of the season, Mitch Drummond.

Coach Rob Penney has remained optimistic that the Crusaders’ first win of the season is not far away.

“We feel as though we’re competitive with everybody and on our day we can beat anybody,” he said. “Obviously every week we’ve made it harder for ourselves but we’ve just got to cement a place in the playoffs.

“If we can get there we know we’ll be dangerous. We’ve just got to find a way to get there.”

The odds of the Crusaders reaching the playoffs already are slim and will be slimmer if they lose again to the Chiefs.

Chiefs coach Clayton McMillan said he is “definitely empathetic” for the Crusaders and the many problems they are facing because of injuries and the departure of key players.

“Believe it or not, we all kind of feel for them,” McMillan said. “We do because we’ve been in that situation and we know what it feels like.

“And when you’re in that space there’ll be nobody that’s sleeping too much and they’ll be turning over every stone. Sometimes it only takes one victory to help turn the corner — we hope it’s not us but we won’t be surprised if they throw the kitchen sink at us.”

The situation the Hurricanes’ find themselves in — an almost unprecedented one for the franchise — could hardly draw a starker contrast. The Canes have an abundance of talent and almost all of it fit and available. While their current streak isn’t the longest in their history, the Hurricanes usually don’t hit top gear until later in the season.

They showed off that talent last weekend by making 14 changes to their starting 15 and still beating the Melbourne Rebels 54-28.

The Hurricanes will return to almost full strength against the Highlanders with scrumhalf Cam Roigard, flyhalf Brett Cameron, fullback Ruben Love, winger Kini Naholo and center Billy Proctor rejoining Jordie Barrett.

Xavier Numia, Asafo Aumua, Isaia Walker-Leawere, Peter Lakai and Brayden Iose return to a forward pack in which All Blacks prop Tyrel Lomax will play his 100th Super Rugby game.

“Picking the side for this match was very hard for us,” coach Clark Laidlaw said. “The coaches spent a couple of days trying to settle on a (matchday) 23 trying to fit in players who put on really good performances against the Rebels and probably deserve to be in this week.

“But we obviously rested some of the boys last week who had played a lot of minutes and had been playing well, so the opportunity for them to come back in was there.”

The Queensland Reds and ACT Brumbies meet Saturday in a key match among Australian clubs. The Brumbies are third and the Reds, coming off an upset loss to the Western Force, are fifth on the championship table. The teams are separated by only three points.

___

AP rugby: https://apnews.com/hub/rugby