Super Rugby Pacific wrap: Hurricanes solidify shot at top spot, but do they really want it?

Monday, 11 May 2026

The Hurricanes celebrate Kini Naholo’s second try in their big win over Moana Pasifika in Auckland on Saturday night.

The records continue to be broken for the high-flying Hurricanes, as they solidify their shot at top spot for the Super Rugby Pacific playoffs.

But would they really want it?

Now five points clear with three regular-season games to play, some superstitious types could be starting to get a little twitchy in Canes country.

That’s because, in the four years of this competition, the big quirk is that no team has gone on to lift the silverware after finishing top of the table.

It’s a relatively small sample size, but still, given the Blues (2022), Chiefs (2023 and 2025) and Hurricanes themselves (2024) have all suffered the same fate, it is enough of a curse to contemplate as Clark Laidlaw’s side edge closer to sealing the No 1 seeding.

Each year’s title winner has instead come from the No 2 spot, so whoever finishes there may just take some immediate psychological stimulus of their own.

For now, the Canes continue to canter, though Cam Roigard’s calf injury does throw a spanner in the works with three big Kiwi derbies to come, starting against the misfiring Blues on Saturday night at Eden Park, where the Wellington-based franchise are on a five-game losing run.

Josh Moorby became the fifth Hurricane to score four tries in a game.

Further up the Auckland highway, at North Harbour Stadium, the Canes made amends for their loss there against Moana Pasifika last year with a 50-17 bonus-point thumping, in a fixture where Laidlaw had even been able to rest up some bodies.

That was the fifth half century scored by the Hurricanes this season (in just 11 outings), which marks the most 50-plus scores by a team in any one year, surpassing the four of the Crusaders in 2005, Bulls in 2010, Chiefs in 2016, themselves in 2017 and Waratahs in 2018.

In a game where Kini Naholo scored twice off the bench to mark a fine comeback from injury, competition-leading try-scorer Fehi Fineanganofo (whose 15 is just one short of the season record) was also upstaged by fellow flyer Josh Moorby, who became the fourth Hurricane (after Fineanganofo a fortnight prior, Bailyn Sullivan last year and Ngani Laumape and Ben Lam in 2018) to dot down four times in the one match.

“That’ll cheer him up, he’s been a miserable, because other guys have been scoring tries,” Laidlaw quipped of Moorby, who has now jumped to second on the competition try tally, with 12.

Chiefs make it six-straight

The Chiefs have their own run of three Kiwi derbies to come, starting with the Highlanders at home on Friday night, and have kept themselves in touch with the Canes (who they don’t meet again) after a hard-fought 31-21 win over the Reds in Brisbane on Friday night.

With Wallace Sititi putting in a star showing and scoring two tries, fellow All Black Samisoni Taukei’aho rumbling over for a double off the bench and rookie fullback Isaac Hutchinson also putting in a superb performance, Jono Gibbes’ team became the first to string together six wins on the trot this season.

George Bower celebrates his first-ever Crusaders try, in what was his 100th match for the franchise.

They have an identical 9-2 record to the Canes, but with five bonus points for the latter (three try-scoring ones and two losing ones) the difference, along with a whopping margin of 118 in points differential.

Hold your horses, Crusaders not done

Perhaps it was the return of their horses. Perhaps it was another full house at their new stadium. Perhaps it was George Bower’s 100th match and wonderfully-concocted first-ever try for the franchise. Perhaps it was Leicester Fainga’anuku’s impression of Superman.

Whatever it was, the Crusaders have ensured their title defence is back on track, after their 36-20 bonus-point victory over the Blues in Christchurch on Friday night.

With post-bye games, albeit at home, against the Chiefs and Hurricanes to come, the defending champs’ place in the playoffs was looking no certainty, but that result now all but seals their spot, for a likely finish in the bottom half of the top six. Then, with Will Jordan back, anything could happen.

The third-placed Blues, meanwhile, now face the Canes and Chiefs (with a bye in between), and can be sure to have ‘Stern’ Vern Cotter ringing in their ears this week after being shoved around at their own power game.

“We’re going to just have to be more physical… they were almost training against us at times,” the coach declared, after what was a 20th loss from the Blues’ last 21 visits to the red and blacks.

Bottom five set in stone?

It’s now eight-straight weeks that the Fijian Drua, Waratahs, Highlanders, Force and Moana Pasifika have made up the bottom five of the ladder.

That is the same quintet which missed out on the finals last year.

And, after the Waratahs’ 31-26 loss to the Highlanders in Dunedin on Saturday, it does indeed look rather unlikely that any of the current teams with losing records will now be able to finish in the top six.

The Landers might be just three points outside, but have daunting away trips to the Chiefs and Hurricanes before a last-round bye, while the Force finish with three home games but their 32-15 defeat to the Brumbies in Canberra on Saturday night dented their hopes.

With the Brumbies and Reds still having wooden-spooners Moana to play, even three wins for any of those chasing sides may well not be enough.

Super Rugby Pacific, Rd 13

At One NZ Stadium, Christchurch: Crusaders 36 (George Bower, Jamie Hannah, Rivez Reihana, Kyle Preston, Sevu Reece, George Bell tries; Reihana 3 con) Blues 20 (AJ Lam, Sam Nock, Hoskins Sotutu tries; Beauden Barrett con, Stephen Perofeta pen). HT: 12-13.

At Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane: Chiefs 31 (Wallace Sititi 2, Samisoni Taukei'aho 2 tries; Damian McKenzie 4 con, pen) Reds 21 (Lachie Anderson, Joe Brial, Treyvon Pritchard tries; Harry McLaughlin-Phillips con, Louis Werchon 2 con). HT: 10-7.

At Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin: Highlanders 31 (Jonah Lowe 2, Caleb Tangitau, Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens tries; Cameron Millar 4 con, pen) Waratahs 26 (Andrew Kellaway, Apolosi Ranawai, Clem Halaholo, Sid Harvey tries; Sid Harvey 3 con). HT: 28-7.

At North Harbour Stadium: Hurricanes 50 (Josh Moorby 4, Kini Naholo 2, Du’Plessis Kirifi, Jone Rova tries; Callum Harkin 5 con) Moana Pasifika 17 (Tuna Tuitama 2, Israel Leota, tries; Jackson Garden-Bachop con). HT: 19-7.

At GIO Stadium, Canberra: Brumbies 32 (Lachlan Shaw, Ollie Sapsford, Ryan Lonergan, Chris Mickelson tries; Lonergan 3 con, 2 pen) Force 15 (Harry Johnson-Holmes, Carlo Tizzano tries; Ben Donaldson con, pen). HT: 14-10.

Points (games played): Hurricanes 45 (11), Chiefs 40 (11), Blues 38 (12), Crusaders 32 (12), Brumbies 29 (12), Reds 27 (11), Highlanders 24 (12), Waratahs 21 (11), Fijian Drua 20 (11), Force 18 (11), Moana Pasifika 4 (12).