Sunwolves claim famous win

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The Sunwolves produced a classy, composed performance to secure a stunning 30-15 win over the Chiefs in Hamilton on Saturday. CRAIG LEWIS reports.

In three previous seasons of Vodacom Super Rugby, the Sunwolves had never won away from home, while managing just a solitary victory against a New Zealand opponent before this historic result.

There is little doubt that this was the most impressive all-round performance that the Sunwolves have produced since joining the competition, having dominated the Chiefs in the first half, before displaying impressive composure to close out the match.

The Japanese side produced a rollicking start to this contest, and made an important strike as early as the third minute when Shuhei Matsuhashi finished off a beautifully-worked try. Flyhalf Hayden Parker slotted a penalty soon after to leave the Chiefs facing a 10-point deficit.

It served to rattle the home side, considering that they were coming off the back of a 54-17 hammering at the hands of the Brumbies last weekend, and their defence again looked problematically porous during the opening exchanges of this encounter.

In the first quarter, the Chiefs had conceded eight turnovers and endured their troubles at lineout time, while the Sunwolves visibly grew in confidence as they remained in control of proceedings heading towards half-time.

With the hosts continuing to wilt under pressure, South African winger Gerhard van den Heever produced a beautiful break to lay the foundation for a try finished off by powerful lock Uwe Helu in the 32nd minute.

The Sunwolves weren’t done yet, though. Before the break, Parker slotted another penalty to send his side into a quite remarkable 23-3 lead. History was beckoning.


The scoreline, and indeed the half-time stats would have caused many to do a double take. Having enjoyed 65% of possession, the Sunwolves made 416m to 171, 90 carries to 44 and forced the Chiefs to make more than double the number of tackles (105 to 51).

Soon after the restart, the Chiefs threatened to launch a comeback when Alex Nankivell dotted down under the posts, but Van den Heever – having botched a previous opportunity – would score next to restore the visitor’s 20-point buffer heading into the final quarter.

Although the Chiefs briefly ignited some hope when Etene Nanai-Seturo scored in the 64th minute, the Sunwolves simply refused to be denied, going on to record a historic and fully-deserved victory.


Sunwolves – Tries: Shuhei Matsuhashi, Uwe Helu, Gerhard van den Heever. Conversions: Hayden Parker (3). Penalties: Parker (3).
Chiefs – Tries: Alex Nankivell, Etene Nanai-Seturo. Conversion: Damian McKenzie. Penalty: McKenzie.

Sunwolves – 15 Jason Emery, 14 Gerhard van den Heever, 13 Shane Gates, 12 Michael Little, 11 Jamie Henry, 10 Hayden Parker, 9 Kaito Shigeno, 8 Rahboni Warren Vosayaco, 7 Shuhei Matsuhashi, 6 Hendrik Tui, 5 Uwe Helu, 4 Luke Thompson, 3 Hiroshi Yamashita, 2 Atsushi Sakate, 1 Pauliasi Manu.
Substitutes: 16 Nathan Vella, 17 Sam Prattley, 18 Asaeli Ai Valu, 19 Tom Rowe, 20 James Moore, 21 Jamie Booth, 22 Phil Burleigh, 23 Rikiya Matsuda.

Chiefs – 15 Shaun Stevenson, 14 Sean Wainui, 13 Alex Nankivell, 12 Orbyn Leger, 11 Etene Nanai-Seturo, 10 Damian McKenzie, 9 Brad Weber, 8 Taleni Seu, 7 Mitchell Karpik, 6 Mitchell Brown, 5 Michael Allardice, 4 Brodie Retallick (c), 3 Angus Ta’avao, 2 Samisoni Taukei’aho, 1 Aidan Ross.
Subs: 16 Bradley Slater, 17 Tevita Mafileo, 18 Sefo Kautai, 19 Jesse Parete, 20 Lachlan Boshier, 21 Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi, 22 Bailyn Sullivan, 23 Ataata Moeakiola.

Photo: Phil Walter/Getty Images

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Craig Lewis