Supershots

Serial offenders without subtlety
Pardon us for being cynical, but watching the Hurricanes turn into classic serial offenders in their spirited second-half defence against the Waratahs reminded us: were these the same Hurricanes so affronted by the tactics and style of the new All Black captain when the Crusaders were giving them a lesson a few weeks back? Problem was the Hurricanes weren't particularly subtle in Sydney. Still, if you can't beat 'em ...

$500,000 question
The Waratahs forgot one of the oldest adages in the third quarter in Sydney: take your points. How they must be ruing repeatedly turning down a string of kickable penalties in the second half. With the Hurricanes down to 14 players for 20 of the 40 minutes, and 19-7 turned into, say, 19-13 with 25 minutes left, your money would have been on the hosts getting home. A string of decisions which have cost the Waratahs franchise about $500,000 in hosting revenue.

Not me, mate
Quote of the weekend, from Hurricane Jerry Collins on the vexed issue of whether players should be rotated and whether, as reported two weeks ago, he was tired: "That didn't come from my mouth, mate. I get paid to play 16 or 17 weeks in a row. You'll get no gripes out of me. It's the same as any other job, I suppose."

Healthy and wealthy
Spare a thought for Blues prop Mike Noble. There he was on the sideline in the 79th minute of Saturday's debacle at Eden Park, still waiting for his first minute of game time this season. And he's still waiting. He was the only Blue who didn't make it on to the pitch. And that most likely makes him, come Air New Zealand Cup time, the freshest prop with the fattest wallet in front-row land.

Record for veteran
A nice way for veteran Reds forward Mark Connors to sign off, with a win over the Highlanders in his 134th game for Queensland. That breaks the longstanding mark of former Wallaby captain Andrew Slack.

The Giteau gamble
Wouldn't you have thought the Brumbies would have taken a punt on Matt Giteau in Christchurch on Friday night? Sure he has a niggling knee problem, and the Brumbies clearly gambled that neither South African side would get ahead of them on the ladder. But as Giteau is walking out on them to the wealth of the Force, might the Brumbies not have been expected to get their last pound of flesh out of the gifted midfielder?

Goodbye Sailor
Have we seen the last of Wendell Sailor in rugby? His indefinite ban for breaching the Australian Rugby Union code of conduct is understood to relate to a failed drugs test. Earlier this season, a drunken Sailor copped a three-game ban - just the latest in a series of run-ins. Farewell Dell.