The Melbourne Rebels' mid-season revival has continued with a strong win over the Highlanders.
They built an early lead and never looked back, taking out the 47-31 victory to leap into the top four.
Catch every game of Super Rugby Pacific LIVE, ad-free and on demand on Stan Sport.
So what did we learn?
The Melbourne Rebels are a legitimate force in Super Rugby Pacific 2024 in the quest to be the best-ever Rebels side.
They’ve backed up tough wins over the NSW Waratahs and Fijian Drua with their first NZ scalp since 2022. They rectified their issues regarding the slow starts and blew out the Highlanders right before the break thanks to Lancaster’s second and a penalty try.
It’s a remarkable turnaround for a side that let in back-to-back 50-point bombs just a month earlier. Suddenly, they leap the Chiefs into the top four as they head into next week’s bye.
If they want to compete with the best, they need to fix their lineout woes, which returned in the first half. Clashes against the Crusaders, Blues and Reds will test this side's quality further.
Darby Lancaster has added the same spark to the Rebels’ attack as Corey Toole did for the Brumbies.
The pace is one thing but the confidence to back himself allows Lancaster to make the best of his freakish ability.
The grubber to himself was the perfect option to showcase his pace and he dived over in the corner.
He then showed off the Sevens' skills to release and go again for his second before completing the hat trick thanks to some great hands and pace.
Lancaster suits the Rebels' style of play excellently and will only get better as his exposure to 15s continues.
Carter Gordon is an enigma of a goal kicker.
There have been three cases in 2024 where Gordon has shanked kicks from right next to the posts.
He’s done it twice in two games but followed up with the perfect strikes from the sidelines. He did it twice in the win over the Drua and for both of Lancaster’s first-half tries.
He entered the game at 66.7%, below Ben Donaldson (70%) and Noah Lolesio (88%), improving on it with a 5/6 display from the tee.
Gordon could be a clear first-choice Wallabies ten if he keeps producing attacking performances like this, damaging with his carries as he crossed for a double.
However, the question mark continues to hover over his head about his goal-kicking. Getting rid of the howler is a must.
Nothing sums up the Rebels best than the game-sealing try to Carter Gordon, displaying the merits of their overtly positive mindset.
They would’ve been well in their rights to kill the clock and kick the three points to put the lead out to 14.
Instead, Ryan Louwrens saw the Highlanders napping and hit Gordon for his second. Louwrens’ contribution must be recognised in 2024, playing some of his best footy and keeping talented Englishman Jack Maunder on the bench.
He scored an easy try to open the scoring before setting up Gordon's five-pointer.
The use of Taniela Tupou off the bench has created an interesting dynamic for teams to try and shut down.
The Highlanders kept Ethan de Groot on the bench and seemingly made the reactive move to insert him instantly when the Rebels brought on Tupou.
De Groot had an instant impact in blowing up a defensive maul for Ricky Jackson to cross before scoring one of his own.
Tupou had his own impactful moment when he put Andrew Kellaway into a hole, setting up Gordon.
However, it came too late as the Rebels held on, leaving Highlanders fans to question whether the trigger was pulled too late.
