Marc dissects the Warriors sale while legendary Kiwi swimmer Dean Kent looks back on his extraordinary career
New Zealand franchises scored three wins out of four games over the weekend however it was far from comprehensive.
The Canes needed a late surge to quell the Sunwolves, the Crusaders were more clinical than the Brumbies, the Highlanders dodged a bullet in Pretoria while the Blues should have done what the coaches told them to do in the second half against the Jaguares.
It is against that backdrop that Radio Sport Radio Editor Nigel Yalden has selected his NZ Team of the Week:
1 Wyatt Crockett (Crusaders) cantered onto the field in Canberra after just five minutes due to an injury to starter Tim Perry. He then proceeded to chug through the remaining 75 minutes with typical industry, as is evident by his 15 tackles (equal top for the game), as well as winning a key penalty late in the match with his scrummaging. Experience … it never gets old.
2 Codie Taylor (Crusaders) the best of a group of competent hooking performances.
3 Another solid 47 minute outing for Owen Franks (Crusaders); not as impressive as his return game against the Sunwolves yet still way better than any other NZ tighthead this round.
4 Late in that game, its seemed that Sam Whitelock (Crusaders) had a better understanding of the Brumbies lineout than the Brumbies did. He was excellent in all other areas of play & marshalled the team calmly and clearly when reduced to 13 men during the second half.
Sam Whitelock of the Crusaders. Photo / Getty Images.
5 Tom Franklin (Highlanders) has been overshadowed by his locking partner recently but was a standout in an overtly physical forward battle in Pretoria & as always defensively accurate, racking up 19 tackles.
6 Heiden Bedwell-Curtis (Crusaders) & Elliot Dixon (Highlanders) are great blend of the old and the new; rough and ready in a position where you have to be double tough, great endurance and yet with a range of skills that belies their raw boned, in-ya-face style of play.
7 Dillon Hunt (Highlanders) continues to go from strength to strength at this level. His capacity to get around the field is outstanding, matched by his willingness to stick his head places most players wouldn't put their hands, which he did frequently against the Bulls.
8 Jordan Taufua (Crusaders) was simply tremendous against the Brumbies. With ball is hand he made some seriously muscly metres in the only way he knows how – straight ahead – and was smashing folk with his defence is a Forward of the Week performance. Luke Whitelock (Highlanders) was pretty darn good himself against the Bulls, though more defensively than offensively.
9 Aaron Smith (Highlanders) was excellent against the Bulls as he continues his rich vein of form. Shout out to Finlay Christie (Hurricanes) as well, who did everything a halfback needs to do in the modern to a high level on Friday night.
Aaron Smith of the Highlanders. Photo / Photosport.co.nz
10 Another really nice effort from Lima Sopoaga (Highlanders) in all aspects of his play, with the standout feature his flawless kicking off the tee, including some clutch kicks from distance to get the win on the Highveld.
11 The bloke on the other wing got the tries but Seta Tamanivalu (Crusaders) was very effective too especially with strong carries getting his team over the advantage line .
12 Vince Aso (Hurricanes) had himself a night against the Sunwolves as he continues to show his highlight his versatility with an excellent outing at second five, knowing already he can play centre and either wing. His impressive effort sees him receive Back of the Week honours as well as the Russell Westbrook Stat Line of the Week award – 12 carries, 102 metres gained, 5 defenders beaten, 5 clean line breaks, 4 offloads, 2 tries, 2 try assists. The efforts of Ryan Crotty (Crusaders) and Rieko Ioane (Blues) also very good in contrasting situations
13 A group of solid performers though not a clear standout for mine; a toss-up between Matt Proctor (Hurricanes) and Tim Bateman (Crusaders).
14 This is a tough one for me and here's why - when the Hurricanes needed someone to spark them with the Sunwolves hanging on late, Julian Savea (Hurricanes) got them on the front foot with several strong runs; Manasa Mataele (Crusaders) came on as a replacement and made an immediate impact with tries and generally just being a handful for the opposition defence while Ben Smith (Highlanders) reminded us that while he's the best fullback in world rugby, he's also most likely the best right wing in world rugby too.
15 Jordie Barrett (Hurricanes) has bulked up but he's carrying that extra weight without hindrance and used that at key times against the Sunwolves. He was excellent on attack, ran some quite delightful lines and has great vision be it defending as well as defending.
