Tries from Cory Jane and Beauden Barrett have given Victor Vito the flawless send-off as the Hurricanes claimed their maiden Super Rugby title with a 20-3 win over the Lions.
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It has been a long road to the top for the Hurricanes who lost the 2006 and 2015 finals as well as being beaten five times in the semi-finals.
The Hurricanes’ Cory Jane, left, scores a try as the Lions’ Franco Mostert tries to hold him back during the Super Rugby final in Wellington, New Zealand, Saturday, Aug. 6, 2016.
They were also relegated from Super Rugby in 2013, with the Kings taking their place, but coach Johan Ackermann used their absence to rebuild a young side in the domestic Currie Cup, making the final in 2014 and winning it a year ago.
Now the betting odds see the Hurricanes priced at $1.30 to win, while the Lions are out to $3.65.
Coles says there has been a lot of sorrow for the club and the win is for all for Hurricanes teams that have been trying for years.
While the Hurricanes are favourites, Boyd cautions against showing the Lions any lack of respect.
Early on, Barrett snatched the initiative with a deft touch finder to transfer play deep into the Lions’ half.
It was a kicking duel Barrett won as he kept returning the Hurricanes to point-scoring positions despite the Lions dominating territory. “He was already at a high level before then”, Jane said.
Fly-half Jantjies though seemed to be put off by the ball falling off the tee as a rushed penalty attempt from 45 metres into the wind fell short and the game remained at 0-0.
Equally, up to this stage, his halfback partner Faf de Klerk was equally off colour and unable to provide the spark as he tried to work with mostly slowed-down ball.
The Hurricanes, however, utilised a fast line speed in defence to put pressure on the Lions in their clash in the regular season, romping to a 50-17 victory at Ellis Park and that speed has been even more evident since June.
After Barrett converted, Jantjies got the Lions’ solitary points from a penalty and the Hurricanes showed marvellous resolve to maintain their 10-3 advantage before the interval, driving the Lions off the ball at their own scrum with an astonishing show of power. Handling errors however were thwarting their efforts. The Lions, however, were still rock solid on defence and they might have earned some reward at this stage but Jantjies fluffed a penalty around the hour mark.
In 2010, after a stint playing rugby in England with Saracens, he took up refereeing and in 2011 refereed his first Super Rugby match between the Hurricanes and the Western Force.
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Replacements: Armand van der Merwe, Corne Fourie, Jacques van Rooyen, Lourens Erasmus, Ruan Ackermann, Ross Cronje, Howard Mnisi, Jaco van der Walt.
