It was super hot, super rugby in Eketahuna on Saturday as temperatures soared above 30C for the pre-season clash between the Blues and Hurricanes.
In a game where hard-working props dropped between three and four kilograms in the heat, the Blues, coached by Tana Umaga, let the competition know they're back with a 40-12 win over a star-studded Hurricanes side.
![Young Eketahuna JAB players.](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/N7NORBUCYG7QRFEOXD3C2XC32A.jpg?auth=a841cfb96d0efe77c979acda002ec0e96103aaaabaf38166dab35ba7f3f9f5df&width=16&height=13&quality=70&smart=true)
The Hurricanes took to the field with World Cup-winning All Blacks Nehe Milner-Skudder, Julian Savea, Beauden Barrett, TJ Perenara and Victor Vito, but were on the back foot from the get-go when the Blues opened the scoring in the first quarter with a James Parsons try.
At halftime it was 7-all after Cory Jane off-loaded the ball to Leni Apisai for a try, which was converted by Beauden Barrett.