Super Round kicked into another gear as the Rebels and Hurricanes played out a highly entertaining contest, dominated by a controversial gesture by Ardie Savea.
It was a spiteful clash that saw the first upgraded red card, a Rebels' fightback and some Barrett magic to guide the Hurricanes to a 39-34 win.
Catch every game of Super Rugby Pacific LIVE on Stan Sport. Start your Free Sport Trial Now
Following a one-sided opener to kick off the round, the game brought the AAMI Park crowd to life, offering a bit of everything.
Here's what we learn:
1.Crossing the line
It’s the incident that dominated discussions after Ardie Savea’s brain snap just before the break.
Social media was divided when Savea appeared to direct the throat slit gesture towards scrumhalf Ryan Louwrens following a wild scuffle that started when Dane Coles ripped the headgear off Josh Canham’s head.
For one of the biggest role models in this game, it was a terrible look and Savea apologised after the game, admitting he has to be better.
He said the gesture was to suggest that he was 'coming to smash him' when he returned from the bin.
Tensions naturally spill over in a game but Savea’s actions crossed the line and will likely lead to further scrutiny.
The incident will overshadow yet another brilliant performance by the Hurricanes captain, powering the visitors to an early lead with a number of bruising carries, scoring twice and setting up another.
2. The gamblers
Even in defeat, the Rebels played the type of footy that can help attract the strong 15,282 crowd that attended day one of Super Round back to AAMI Park.
With the Hurricanes down to 13, they threw the ball around with no fear, led by the impressive Carter Gordon.
Gordon showed serious pace to create a chance from inside his half for Monty Ioane, rewarded with his own after gathering a loose ball minutes later. The toll of the game showed as he cramped up towards the end but continued to fight and try to get the hosts home.
Down by eight, they could’ve easily taken the three to put the game within a covered try. However, they rolled the dice and came up trumps when Richard Hardwick barged over for his second in 15 minutes.
The defeat will sting but there is plenty of things to like about the performance of the Rebels.
3. New laws in effect
We got another look at the new laws with the first yellow card upgraded to a red as Tevita Mafileo’s cleanout drew the ire of the TMO.
Mafileo’s effort was reckless and unnecessary, wiping out Richard Hardwick as the hosts tried to hold up a try.
Whilst it still came with a couple of minutes of watching the referees discuss and dissect the incident, it was still a positive step to see it dealt with and explained so clearly by the referee and commentary team
4. Kick in the teeth
Ultimately, the lack of accuracy came back to haunt the Rebels.
They twice kicked it out on the full just after the opening quarter, allowing the Hurricanes to build pressure and eventually find their over via Ardie Savea.
Gordon turned on the magic after the break with a great grubber for Lachlan Anderson before a lazy box kick produced an easy penalty for Jordie Barrett to extend the lead.
Along with this, they struggled with their breakdown cleanout, allowing the visitors off the hook on multiple occasions and to dictate the first half.
5. Canham capitalises
With the likes of Matt Philip and Rob Leota on the sidelines, Josh Canham is taking his opportunity to shine.
He is the Rebels’ most improved in 2023 after another quality performance in the second row.
Canham was a workhorse in defence, recording 11 tackles as he set the tempo for the forwards.
He was also a consistent target at line-out time and looked to disrupt the Hurricanes wherever possible.
Canham was supported well by the likes of Richard Hardwick and Brad Wilkin whilst Pone Fa’amausili’s influence was noticeable as soon as he came off the bench.
