Congratulations to the Hurricanes, the Super Rugby 2016 champions. After falling at the final hurdle last season, you can’t begrudge the men from Wellington their maiden championship.
They finished top of the tree again, giving themselves home-field advantage – and boy did they take it. It certainly didn’t look like it would end this way after losing their first two games of the season.
It could have been so different had the Lions not rested their star players in the final game of the season in Argentina. Their second 15 were beaten by Los Jaguares which relegated them to second in the table and meant that they had to go to windy Wellington and try and play their brand of rugby in conditions that really didn’t suit them. They certainly tried but Lionel Mapoe will most definitely not want to see Cory Jane’s try again.
Here is my review of the season just been.
Team of the year
It isn’t often that the team that wins the championship doesn’t win team of the year. Of course the Hurricanes deserve their plaudits, but I simply can’t look past the Lions here.
Three years ago they were taking part in a playoff to stay in Super Rugby and this year they are top try scorers, top point scorers and top entertainers. A young team, that at the start of the season had no superstars. If they can carry on the way they played this season, next season huge things could be ahead.
Coach of the year
Honourable mentions must go to Chris Boyd and Tana Umaga for the jobs they did. Boyd went one better with the ‘Canes this year and Umaga has seen the green shoots of recovery start to appear after some lean years in Auckland, but once again the Lions win this one.
Johan Ackerman has done an incredible job. A Super Rugby finalist himself with the Sharks, the big former second rower has proven himself to be an elite coach. South African teams have always had a big pack, but Ackerman got those big boys playing good rugby, getting the ball through the hands and gave Elton Jantjies the freedom he needs to thrive.
You are surely watching a future Springbok coach cut his teeth.
Player of the season
Again a category where there were a number of possibilities. Israel Folau, Beauden Barrett, Stephen Moore, Ardie Saves – I could go on.
However, I am going to plump for Akihito Yamada. This may well be a controversial call but Yamada’s haul of nine in a team that certainly didn’t score many was a superb effort. These nine tries included a brilliant hat-trick against the Cheetahs in Singapore and showed the rugby world that he could cope at this level.
Breakout player of the season
Sergeal Petersen, Richie Mo’unga, Rohan Janse Van Rensburg and Matt Feddes, among others, made a huge claim for this accolade but the winner in my eyes is Damian McKenzie. The Chiefs fullback burst onto the scene at the start of the season, scoring in his first five games. His kicking technique is now world-famous with his smile being seen on big screens throughout the Southern Hemisphere.
A first call up to the All Blacks squad came this year, and although he was unlucky to miss out on the Rugby Championship squad, there are big things ahead for McKenzie.
Try of the season
This was so hard to choose. Halaholo’s try in the semi-final after Barrett’s chip and chase, the Chiefs’ match winner in the last second away at the Jaguares, what seems like every try the Lions scored – these were all beauties. Howeer Elliot Dixon’s try against the Jaguares was something special.
Forwards and backs seamlessly interlinking, the ball going through a good eight pairs of hands from half way before Dixon touched down in the corner. It was rugby at its finest, a try for the ages.
Disappointment of the season
There is a clear winner here. Los Jaguares were a team packed full of Argentinian internationals. A team that had just come third at the Rugby World Cup. Was it too much rugby for a lot of these guys?
Were they complacent or was the constant intensity of the games too much for them? They were my Dark Horses for the tournament.
I thought teams would find it very difficult to win in Argentina but the Chiefs, Highlanders and Stormers all did just that. They also lost to both other newcomers in the form of the Sunwolves and Kings, the latter they played with 13 men.
Let’s hope they take this season as a learning exercise and come back stronger next season.
Blooper of the season
This was a one-horse race until Mapoe’s gift to Corey Jane on Saturday, but we will let him off that one. Joe Pietersen has the dubious honour of winning this award.
With the scores locked at 15-all the Sharks won a penalty 15 metres out, bang in front of the posts, in the last minute of the game. It would be the last kick of the game and looked like handing the Sharks a famous win at Loftus Versfeld. The Sharks players celebrated on the bench, and as the kick was a gimme – and who could blame them?
The only problem was Pietersen hooked the kick wide which was the final action of the game and left a few Sharks players with proverbial egg on their faces.
And that’s it for another season of Super Rugby. Let’s hope 2017 is anywhere near as good.
taylorman
Roar Guru
Six points, while conceding 37? Thats a beating by a good margin these days? News to me.
Akari
Roar Rookie
We will never know, Frisky. I can only suggest that the Lions chances are much improved if they played the Canes on the high but dry veldt in Lion country. I am not saying that the Lions will have conquered, of course.
Frisky
Guest
Great summary, except too little respect for the Canes. The Lions would have won if played on home soil? Really?? What was the score when they met in Lion country?
taylorman
Roar Guru
Yes apologies Tim, re-read it and I was actually arguing the same point. ?
Faith
Guest
True. True. Long live the Tahs. Long live thugby.
CUW
Guest
i still think they were lucky to get crusaders at home for 1/4. crusaders beat them by a good margin in africa , despite the very obvious efforts of strawberry during the pool-plays. if ackermann's decision not to take full team to argies was vindicated , it was against the crusaders.
CUW
Guest
PSDT untill inury
Akari
Roar Rookie
No problems, Rob. Mertz on the 'Other Rugby Show' on Foxtel last night made the comment that the Lions lacked the skills required to win Wellington and I might agree with you that this might be because of this being their first final. But hey, lets move on. I, by the way, wasn't advocating that both titles be given to the Canes and their coaches. My sentimental favourites would be the Blues and Tana but mainly for the manner in which they came out very strongly after the June tests and went close to denying home play-off finals to the Canes.
Jerry
Guest
I can see the argument for Ackerman. On the other hand, while people will rule out Boyd due to the Canes finishing first last year and say he only continued on from the platform he'd established, given the way the Canes lost Thrush, Franks, Smith & Nonu before the season then played most of the season without Broadhurst & NMS and had to deal with injuries to Toomaga-Allen, Goodes, Thomson or Matu'u at the business end of the comp...it's a pretty impressive achievement.
Rob Seltzer
Roar Guru
You make a good point Akari but as Tman says the Lions came from absolutely no where. Not only have they not qualified for the finals before, they were fighting for their Super Rugby lives not 4 seasons ago. They did it not by bullying teams into giving them penalties to win games like the Bulls did in their heyday, the ran teams ragged, played 'New Zealand' brand rugby that no one was expecting and most couldn't live with. I would have loved to have seen a dry track on the weekend and seen how it panned out. Yes the Canes did superbly after losing their first couple of games in turning it around, and yes they certainly did have the Lions number home and away but they had a home final last season. They have players that have been there and done it before. I am pretty certain they were up there as favorites at the start of the season. I know that makes it impressive to then fulfill that potential but still they were fancied.
Rob Seltzer
Roar Guru
Can you name me a player out of the poor South African teams I mentioned that did well? The reason Folau is in there is he looked a threat every time he got hte ball, made breaks in every game and topped the try scoring charts. Without him the Waratah's wouldn't even had had a sniff at the finals, he was pivotal. There was no player, in my view, from any other South African franchise that carried a team like he did.
Charlie Kimble
Guest
How this for a spin Plumbtree for Springbok coach, after all those years at the Shark he has certainly shown the Canes a thing or two.
Charlie Kimble
Guest
I am told the Kings are bankrupt and have been taken over by their South African governing body, this was supposed to have been the quota team and based on these promises they regulated the lions. I wander who is laughing now. Anyhow they have been put into the curry cup last minute dot.com again orchestrated I am told. Some funny meddling stuff going in their rugga.
Tim Reynolds
Roar Pro
Tman, I had trouble unravelling the logic in your comment. My point (and Akari's, I think) was that naming the Lions as team of 2016 had the shaky foundations that giving Cheika the coach award last year had. Ackerman however had much more claim to being seen as Super coach of 2016, because of the performance of the Lions in coming from nowhere and in the transformational effect he could have on SA rugby.
SAVAGE
Guest
Inspiration of the year from round 1 game between Brumbies & Hurricanes: "They look fat, they look slow, and they look unfit, and they're going to pay for it in the second half" guess who?
Council
Guest
I'm with Tman here. How many of those tries were scored off a maul? Also you mention several SA teams being poor, therefore reason enough not to include any of their players, but include folau?
Baylion
Roar Rookie
As a Lions fan I appreciate the recognition the Lions are getting but the way the Canes played and controlled the play-offs make them the Team of the Year. And BBBBBBBBBBBBB (how many Bs?) must be player of the year (Beauden Ball Breaking Bok Bashing Bloody Bodacious Bastard Barrett)
Zack
Roar Rookie
"..there are big things ahead for McKenzie. Very - if unintended - pertinent comment on McKenzie's future, operative word being "big" as in big players being preferred. Unfortunately, he is too small to be a viable consistent option for the All Blacks in the 2 positions where we have depth: fullback, and 1st 5/8. I believe he would be devastating one position in at 9 as I don't believe he has a long-term future in the All Blacks in either of his preferred positions. Perenara had a good finish to the season, but is crap for the All Blacks - Kerr-Barlow is even worse. Mckenzie has time on his hands to develop and fine-tune a half-back's skills to force himself in All Blacks selections by RWC'19..
Akari
Roar Rookie
Tman - that 1st round thrashing of the Canes by the Bumblebees and the manner of the Canes 'lucky' win against the Blues in the 3rd round and thrashing by the Sharks in Durban suggested that the Canes would have had Buckley's chance of making the finals. Instead, they turned things around after Durban by emphatically topping the comp following Ackerman's failed gamble against the Jaguares. I could go on but ...
DanFan
Guest
Poor old Hurricanes. As losers in last year's final, no one wanted to know. This year winners and all everyone can talk about is the Lions. Fair's fair the Lions had a great year but the Hurricanes are the team of the year without a doubt. Maybe the Lions give hope to those seeking big improvements. Well, the Hurricanes are that team as well. They have been in the shadow of every other NZ team for 20 years. To finally take the title from their more francied franchisees is a wonderful achievement. Save "Biggest Improvers" for the Lions and see what they can come up with next year.