Hurricanes edge Crusaders after contentious Fehi Fineanganofo try survives review

Friday, 1 May 2026

At Hnry Stadium, Wellington: Hurricanes 38 (Du’Plessis Kirifi 21’, Josh Moorby 36’, Cam Roigard 39’, Raymond Tuputupu 53’, Fehi Fineanganofo 65’ tries; Ruben Love 5 con, pen) Crusaders 31 (Leicester Fainga’anuku 8’, Noah Hotham 46’, Rivez Reihana 58’ Dom Gardiner 78’ tries; Taha Kemara con, pen, Reihana 3 con): HT: 24-10.

The Hurricanes have gone clear at the top of the Super Rugby Pacific standings, edging the defending champion Crusaders after a controversial try to in-form winger Fehi Fineanganofo to open a four-point gap on the Chiefs.

The 38-31 win preserved the Hurricanes’ unbeaten record at Hnry Stadium in 2026 and kept them on track for a top-of-the-table finish, which will guarantee home advantage throughout the playoffs.

The sides traded tries in a tightly-fought contest, but a late first-half burst proved decisive, with the Hurricanes claiming their eighth win while also benefiting from a contentious forward-pass call.

After a quiet opening hour in a game dominated by kicking, Fineanganofo latched onto an offload from Isaia Walker-Leawere despite appearing ahead of the passer. The try survived a TMO review for a potential forward pass, taking his tally to 15 for the season.

He now sits one shy of the single-season record held by Ben Lam and Joe Roff, and would already be level had he not gifted a try to a team-mate in the season opener.

Referee James Doleman, who originally awarded the try on the field, told Crusaders captain David Havili: “Obviously we checked the last pass but we don’t believe it’s clearly and obviously forward out of the hands.”

Former Crusaders halfback and Sky Sport analyst Justin Marshall was adamant the referee had erred. “James Doleman is trying to convince himself this isn't forward, and he's not doing the right thing,” Marshall said on the Sky Sport broadcast.

“That pass has not gone backwards.”

Hurricanes coach Clark Laidlaw admitted it was a “tight call” after the game, but praised Fineanganofo’s sevens background for the match-sealing play.

The competition’s leading try-scorer was brought to ground by Dom Gardiner but released the ball quickly, got back to his feet, and took off again, exchanging passes with Walker-Leawere and sprinting through to score.

“Yeah it was a tight call, but there’s those passes every game,” Laidlaw said.

“I just thought that little skill-set that Fehi showed there, the power and the awareness, was exceptional. It was really good to see.

“That’s what sevens teaches you; to get tackled and get back to your feet.”

Neither Havili or Crusaders coach Rob Penney appeared to have any complaints after the close finish, instead lamenting the late first-half collapse.

Havili had a rough 150th game, mostly due to poor kicking. He kicked the ball out of bounds in the second half, giving the Hurricanes the field position they needed to score through Raymond Tuputupu, and then gave the ball away again in the final seconds.

The Crusaders struck first in the top-four clash. Leicester Fainga’anuku powered over in the eighth minute after again being named at openside flanker, despite the late loss of centre Braydon Ennor before kickoff.

Hurricanes co-captain and opposite No 7 Du’Plessis Kirifi responded midway through the half after a quick-tap penalty from Cam Roigard shifted momentum.

Ruben Love and Taha Kemara exchanged penalties and the half appeared headed for a 10-10 stalemate before the Hurricanes struck twice in four minutes to open a 14-point lead.

Billy Proctor pounced on a loose ball from a Love bomb on halfway. Peter Lakai broke through and offloaded to Josh Moorby, who ran in his fourth try in three games to take his season tally to eight.

Moments later, Brayden Iose surged down the left and chipped ahead, allowing Roigard to gather and score. Love converted to give the Hurricanes a healthy halftime buffer – a decisive stretch in the wash-up.

Noah Hotham brought the Crusaders back within a converted try early in the second half, darting over from the base of the ruck after catching the defence napping. Rivez Reihana, on for Kemara (knee pain) at the break, added the extras.

After Fineanganofo’s contentious try stood, the Crusaders hit back through Gardiner to salvage a bonus point and trim the margin to seven, ensuring the forward-pass decision will dominate debate for the rest of the weekend.

What’s next

The Crusaders host the Blues under the roof at One Zealand Stadium in Christchurch next Friday, while the Hurricanes will have the opportunity to rest some of their frontline players after a brutal run of fixtures when they travel to face the last-place Moana Pasifika at North Harbour Stadium on Saturday. Fineanganofo could be one, with Kini Naholo poised to make his long-awaited return from an ACL injury.