The rested Highlanders take on the touring Stormers in Dunedin to kick off Round 4 of the Super Rugby season. Join The Roar for all the action from 5:35pm (AEDT).
The Highlanders might have had a staggered start to the season, with this being just their second game, but this match sees the beginnings of a run of crucial clashes for the south island side, playing the Crusaders, Hurricanes and the Chiefs.
A solid win against the Stormers is essential as they head into this series of big matches.
And there’s no reason to think that they won’t achieve it. The Highlanders have just three changes to the side that beat the Blues a couple of weeks ago – one of the new starters being the exciting, and massive, Tevita Nabura.
For the Stormers, after their opening round win, their trip overseas has gone from heartbreak to heart attack. Against the Tahs they were one solid defensive lineout away from a hard-earned draw but ended up with a loss. When they played the Crusaders last week they got blown away in the first 20 minutes and never recovered.
The South African franchise haven’t won in New Zealand for nine matches, but they are stronger than last week with the return of Damian Willemse at #10.
It does feel as if the Stormers are going to have to start very well, get ahead and hold on. They were slow out of the blocks last week and by the time they got into the game there was no way back.
Prediction
The Highlanders have some serious quality in key positions. If Aaron Smith can have another good game and unleash the attacking power of his backline then it’s hard to see the Stormers having a good day.
Highlanders to win by 15 points.
Bing
Guest
There’s a certain Irish halfback that I would rate above Smith. Everyone has an opinion. Mine is that I wouldn’t call Smith great- yet.
Taylorman
Guest
Yea I like it, the old days were exactly like that. Easy for us on the sudelines but when your adrenalines pumping you do what you always do and good halfbacks hassle, big time. They let the opposition know their size cant be underestimated. It makes them appear and more importantly feel bigger than they are. Almost as a defence mechanism.
Tony
Guest
Bing - no it was nothing to do with his feistiness on the field or whether kiwis can dish it out but not take it, it was your comment "while a good player " etc do u seriously think the AB's wld be content with just a "good player" at 9 ? Aaron Smith is recognized as the best 9 in world rugby not just by Kiwis - feistiness is just part of the deal with 9's hes no diff from that but his skills are 10/10 +
Harry Jones
Expert
He may repeat as SR’s missed tackle champ IF he stays healthy and IF his coach remains concussed. 21 misses tackles so far. It takes Eben Etzebeth 7 seasons to get to that number.
Misha
Guest
Raymond Rhules OK! Can't understand how this guy remains at a top level.
Faith
Guest
The Storm are a handy team but seem unable to manage road games as well as they do when they are at home. Their intensity tapers off alarmingly at key moments. The Landers were coming off a bye and this would have been a cricket score if they were not rusty. I am talking about the B Smith and Lemopo tries just before and after half-time. Then, forward pass by A Smith to an open Naholo and the latter also dropping a pass with an open tryline Juian Savea style. If Landers key players i.e the Smiths, Squire, Naholo, R Thompson and Sopoaga stay fit they could beat any team on their day esp with Nugget playing as he is ...
Harry Jones
Expert
Ball was in play a staggering 37 minutes. Very few matches go above 37:00...
Harry Jones
Expert
Lethal finishing by the Highlanders who always seem the most comfortable team in the competition at playing without the ball for long stretches and then turning on, with maximum purpose. It’s a tough way to play, but they have a great culture and team spirit. The cover tackle and pilfer by Ben Smith was a metaphor. Stormers ... When you have that much good ball in the 1H and all you can come up with is a couple of scores, it’s gonna come back to haunt you on the road. The tries depended on miracle Feeney-coached passes. No excuses, but injuries have accumulated so much that this was basically an A/B team, with an average age of about 15. So, it might be good building blocks. But jeez, letting Rhule have 80:00 every game is a gift to the opposition (2-3 tries on a platter; and he’ll give you only 1 ... why can’t he finish himself when he breaks?) And Duvenage overused the box; the home team was going to work that out after the Stormer chasers tired or misstimed their leaps. Coaching (except Feeney, whose ball retention and handling skills are evident) is POOR. Tactics are rubbish. Halftime adjustments non-existent. The only bright side is D Willemse looks like a real star in the making, and Rassie would’ve liked seeing D de Allende-Kitshoff-Leyds-Kolisi-Carr all lively and fit.
Malo
Guest
Aaron Smith is the best halfback by a mile.
The Neutral View From Sweden
Roar Guru
I think not only Aaron feeds from his antics. I believe his teammates feed on it too. To have your star player buzzing and driving the opponents nuts with both his skilled play and talk is pretty sweet.
Kia Kaha
Roar Guru
I think that's a fair comment. Like Dane Coles, he needs to find the right balance but sometimes oversteps the mark. But I'm glad to see him playing so well. I imagine he feeds off that energy and brings it to his dynamic game. I remember him getting in the faces of Foley and Hooper in the third-to-last try in the Dunedin Bledisloe. He got some stick back after the Beale try. But I agree with Neutral. He would've been punished in the amateur days. Like a yappy little terrier being swatted away with a swinging arm...
Bing
Guest
My how kiwis attitudes change when it’s rugby and not cricket. I guess it’s like that when you’re winning eh.
Kia Kaha
Roar Guru
Thanks, Oliver, for another excellent call. In recent years, Stormers and travel go together like oil and water. I wonder if they'd had some more home games first up, things would be looking brighter for them. I'm shocked just how bad their lineout has been when they place so much emphasis on their forwards. They're not as bad as their results suggest but they're getting punished on defence and can't get enough momentum on attack to do any damage. I really love to watch Naholo play. He's not as reliable on the right wing as someone like Ben Smith or Israel Dagg. But he's an intelligent footy player and makes good options and has great support play. And he's capable of producing key moments that just take the game away from the opposition. Julian Savea can be as equally destructive, but he needs to improve on his awareness if he has serious aspirations of getting the black jersey back. Ioane has the left wing spot sewn up so the right wing is his best shot. Naholo looks way out in front at the moment. That said, the Highlanders should be concerned about their defence as well. They looked fragile at times against the Blues and tonight was no different, albeit to a lesser degree. In fact, with the exception of the Jaguars against the Hurricanes and the Brumbies against the Reds (and in the latter example they still scored two tries) all sides have managed to score relatively freely. The cards explain that to an extent but attack seems to be winning out over defence at the moment.
Tony
Guest
Bing - Aaron Smith "while a good player" - please what nonsense- he's by far the best halfback in World Rugby - his skills are beyond compare - he gets in the opposition face like all good half backs do - TJ Perenara is another who is always chipping away at the opposition in the Aaron Smith mold -
rebel
Guest
Definitely no bias. Some bad calls but no bias.
Oliver Matthews
Expert
Match Report The Highlanders have beaten the Stormers at Dunedin by 33 to 15 and picked up a solid bonus point win as they look to head into a series of three tough domestic clashes. It was always going to be a tough day for the Stormers but they caught a few fans by surprise in the first 30 minutes or so. The early try from Liam Squire got many saying “Here we go again” as they remembered the way the Crusaders blew the South Africans off the park in the opening 20 minutes of last week’s game. But the Stormers quickly fought back with two of their own tries and proceeded to have a large amount of territory and possession. The problem was that they couldn’t turn those stats into more points on the board and while they struggled to score, the Highlanders always looked dangerous on the counter attack. By the time half time came around the Highlanders had a 4 point lead and both sides knew that the first score of the second half would be crucial. The Highlanders were definitely still favourites but the Stormers had impressed and fought hard to stay in the game. Unfortunately for the tourists that first score was a Whitelock try in the 48th minute and as the ref’s arm went up the Stormers’ heads went down. To be fair to them they never stopped working hard but as the game went on a few things set in. Fatigue understandably was an issue and the Stormers were struggling to handle the pace that was needed to either stretch the Highlanders defence or cope with the darting attacks from players like Aaron Smith. It was also clear that while the Stormers could hold onto the ball pretty well and rack up 14, 15, 16 phases in an attack, they never had the creativity or pace to scare the Highlanders. For a big period the second half turned into a set piece marathon as the Stormers kept hold of the ball but never looked like threatening. For about 20 to 25 minutes the game lost some of its passion and it was very stop start. The Highlanders continued to look dangerous and created a good few scoring opportunities but the clinical execution was missing - a dropped ball here, a forward pass there and the Highlanders squandered two very good scoring opportunities in a matter of minutes. In the final few minutes Aaron Smith supported a good Highlanders break well and took the final pass cleanly to pick up his second try of the game and kill of the game properly. Both Smith and Naholo looked good throughout and were dangerous with ball in hand. In the end it was a comfortable win for the home side but the Highlanders won’t be happy with 31 missed tackles, 11 handling errors and 11 penalties. Against stronger opposition they will get punished for that type of performance and they will want to tighten up before they go head to head with some of the competition’s best over the coming weeks. For the Stormers they will hope that the team has bonded over the past few weeks because there’s been little else to celebrate. It’s amazing how things have changed for them in the space of three weeks. Against the Tahs in round two they were seconds away from a hard earned draw in Sydney but their poor line out led to them losing that one and now as they get back on the plane home they are 0-3 for the tour. Their line out continues to be a weakness and they really miss Etzebeth at the set piece and in general as a talisman. Kolisi is leading by example and playing well but he needs some support. The next few weeks will be important for both sides. The Highlanders take on the best that the Kiwi conference has to offer and will need to pick up at least two wins if they want to be serious final contenders. For the Stormers they return home but keep playing Kiwi opposition when the Blues come to town next week. Then it’s the Reds and then the Bulls and Lions. They will know that they have to pick up victories somewhere in there and the Reds is an obvious target. A good start to another Super Rugby weekend but hopefully there's some more free flowing games to come.
The Neutral View From Sweden
Roar Guru
Well...same antics that Itoje uses when on fire. I guess Nugget is lucky playing in the modern TMO-era, in the old days I reckon he would have been sent to a hospital ;)
Bing
Guest
Aaron Smith, while a good player, his attitude to the opposition is really poor. He makes me cringe at times.
The Neutral View From Sweden
Roar Guru
Yeah, he looks very promising. Was surprised how solid his D was also. Not afraid to cuddle a little with the forwards.
The Neutral View From Sweden
Roar Guru
Aaron Smith is in peak form. He was the clear the difference between the teams... and Raymond Ruhle... Was that a 10/10 performance from Nugget? I say it was. Stormers doesn't look hopeless at all. They seem to have some very promising youngsters, but Stormers being Stormers, it is by no mean a certainty they will grow up to be great rugby players.