Canterbury 41 Wellington 23
KEY POINTS:
For Canterbury there was the joy of victory and a bonus point. For Wellington there was the consolation of a rampant Ma'a Nonu and a sparky Piri Weepu.
For the rest of New Zealand there was a massive anxiety attack that John Schwalger could at some point be called into the All Black World Cup squad.
The Wellington prop has been told he's the next cab off the rank should injury strike in France. There will be a lot of fingers crossed that no such curse befalls the chosen men snug in Graham Henry's plans, for Schwalger, for the second time in three weeks, was chewed up like hot toast.
Campbell Johnstone, he of the infamously strong right shoulder and the man who used to pique the interest of the All Black selectors, burrowed into Schwalger, twisted him, bent him and at times just about buckled him.
It was so one-sided at times it became uncomfortable to watch. Here was a guy under pressure, desperate to prove himself and build his confidence, reaching into his locker and finding nothing. There was no manual. No clever trick to remedy the situation and Canterbury were able to build the foundations of their success on the solidity of their scrummaging.
Or at least they were once Mose Tuial'i and Kevin Senio slowed things down and worked on their accuracy.
When Canterbury got it right at both ends of the scrum they were able to launch some effective backrow moves with the athleticism of all three loose forwards catching the eye.
It was the athleticism of lock Isaac Ross that really caught the eye, however, when he leapt effortlessly to pluck a perfectly weighted Stephen Brett cross kick to score the game's opening try.
It was a try that hinted the Canterbury legacy is secure. Dan Carter has put the ball on a six-pence several times these past few years for Chris Jack and with the latter moving on after the World Cup Ross's time has come.
And it can't surely be long before Brett is a global superstar, doing all the things that Carter has done. The more Brett plays the better he gets.
His cross kick to Ross was the right option executed perfectly. His line kicking was raking and accurate all night and just like Carter, he plays with his head up and soft hands.
His crowning glory came early in the second half when he had the vision to exploit the blindside, kept supporting the ball and when he ran out of team-mates he kicked ahead, blasted past the Wellington cover and touched down.
The All Black selectors have refused to name the players they have on stand-by for the World Cup but they must have Brett in their sights. His progress since an exciting but raw Super 14 debut in early February has been dramatic. Besides, the All Black selectors must realise that raw talent can often have just a small window to be converted into real class.
Jimmy Gopperth was once a bright young thing but there he was last night, struggling to go the distance on restarts and missing the poise that once made him the man to watch.
Wellington were still effective in the midfield, though, where Nonu was as direct as everyone would like him to be each time he plays. Playing in his favoured centre berth he used his power to great effect, busting holes and making clever offloads.
He was shaping as the decisive player in the game until a horrid head clash with Casey Laulala saw him head to the blood bin for a spell and some of his zest for the contest had clearly been jolted out of him.
Maybe if Nonu had stayed in the zone Wellington would have been able to steal an unlikely win. As it was they kept themselves in touch thanks to a neat try from Hosea Gear and one from Thomas Waldrom when he was able to slip through a Johnstone tackle. But they were only ever in touch. They didn't ever give off a vibe of belief, that they actually had the conviction to win in Christchurch.
Canterbury sensed it and Brett gave one shimmy of his hips in the dying embers and put the result beyond doubt and then Rico Gear put the icing on the cake when Brett threw a no-look pass.
Canterbury 41 (I. Ross, S. Brett (2), S. Hamilton, R. Gear tries; S. Brett 4 pens, 2 cons) Wellington 23(H. Gear, T. Waldrom tries; J. Gopperth 2 cons, 2 pens; T. Ellison pen)
