Their points haul at the Sydney Cricket Ground is fifth on Super Rugby s list for most points scored in a match since its inception in 1996. Second, on 118, is the Sharks 75-43 demolition of the Highlanders in Durban in 1997; third, on 115, is the Crusaders 96-19 rout of the Waratahs in Christchurch in 2002; and fourth, on 114, is the Bulls’ 62-52 win over the Cats in Pretoria in 2005. The Hurricanes also scored 10 tries to the Waratahs seven, falling one short of the record for most tries scored by both teams in a Super Rugby match. There were 18 shared between the Chiefs and the Lions in their record-breaking 2010 clash.
Remarkably, the Hurricanes led by just nine with 10 minutes left when Waratahs flanker Lachlan Swinton scored from a lineout, before quick tries from super subs Pepesana Patafilo and Asafo Aumua clinched it. To complete the madness, Tahs fullback Jack Maddocks ran nearly the length of the field on the siren, not enough to avert the hosts’ ninth straight loss in 2021. Unsurprisingly, it was a record score between the sides, the 112-pointer easily topping the 80 they combined for in 2004 when the Waratahs won 49-31 next door at the Sydney Football Stadium, currently under reconstruction. The Hurricanes will breathe a sigh of relief after some narrow defeats at home but kick themselves for some sluggish defence which ushered in soft tries and kept the contest alive against a team already down on confidence. They return home to host the Rebels next Friday.
Western Force break Waratahs hearts at the death
Super Rugby Aotearoa: Standings PERTH, AUSTRALIA - APRIL 17: Domingo Miotti of the Force celebrates after kicking a penalty to win the round nine Super RugbyAU match between the Western Force and the NSW Waratahs at HBF Park, on April 17, 2021, in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)
The Western Force beat the NSW Waratahs 31-30 in a tense Super Rugby AU Round Nine clash at HBF Park in Perth, Western Australia.
Domingo Miotti kicked a walk-off penalty to win the ‘Battle of the Basement’ contest between the Western Force and the NSW Waratahs.
Nothing to see here: Concussion-plagued NRL declared a safe workplace A Set the default text size A Set large text size
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In December 2020, Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Peter V’landys announced a raft of law changes designed at improving the flow and spectacle of rugby league. “You’ve got to give the customer what they want,” he said.
The announcement referenced changes made ahead of the 2021 season, with V’landys contending that “It is clear the new innovations last season were a success… the six-again rule has addressed the biggest issue that was in the game and that was the wrestle.”
The Roar s 2020 Tri Nations and Bledisloe Cup end-of-year awards A Set the default text size A Set large text size
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Only by a matter of weeks, but the southern hemisphere international rugby season is done for 2020, wrapping up a season that we were incredibly lucky to see at all, given how much rugby – and sport in general – was lost to the global pandemic this year.
And with a jolly a red fellow now cleared to land in our part of the world, the timing feels right to hand out some gongs, as a way of wrapping up and putting a bow on the rugby year.