Moana Pasifika defeated the Blues 27-21, with Ardie Savea leading the team to their first victory over the Blues.
The Crusaders, led by coach Rob Penney, defeated the Waratahs 48-33, showcasing a wide-running game.
The Hurricanes secured a last-minute 24-20 victory over the Highlanders, with Cam Roigard scoring two tries.
Round 14 of Super Rugby Pacific 2025 over the weekend had it all. As we enter the sharp end of the competition, last year’s champions, the Blues, were tipped over 27-21 by Moana Pasifika at Albany on Saturday in a game for the ages.
The Crusaders areso firmly back in the mix they’re neck and neck with the impressive Chiefs near the top of the table. In Wellington, the hard-luck team of ’25, the Highlanders, were denied victory over the Hurricanes by some last-gasp brilliance from All Black Cam Roigard.
And the ACT Brumbies went to the top of the table after dealing with the Queensland Reds 24-14 in Canberra with a methodical, measured style that echoed the way their coach Stephen Larkham used to play the game as a World Cup-winning No 10 for Australia.
The crowd of more than 12,000 people at North Harbour Stadium for Moana’s home clash against the Blues were rewarded with a game where the intensity kept winding higher and higher.
At the heart of Moana’s historic first victory over the Blues was, of course, their amazingly inspirational captain, Ardie Savea. He was brilliant in the areas you would expect, at the breakdown and on defence. You might not have anticipated his kicking ability, which no doubt harks back to his days as a schoolboy midfielder. A spiralling 60m touch-finder in the 18th minute would have been impressive if it had been kicked by an international fullback.
With Savea as a beacon, a player like fellow loose forward Miracle Faiʻilagi lived up to his wonderful name, rampaging 92m with the ball, while unsung locks Tom Savage and Sam Slade were machines on defence.
Waking up with the Blues
The path ahead for the Blues is, to put it mildly, rocky. They’re in seventh place on the table, one outside the all-important top six. Next weekend they have the bye, so a bonus-point victory against the New South Wales Waratahs at Eden Park a week later is massively important. Depending on other results, even the bonus point might not be enough to get them to the playoffs.
Last year, when they won the title, the Blues had absolute, justified faith in their physicality. At Albany on Saturday, Moana took them on in the arm wrestle and basically held their own. By the time the Blues looked for attacking alternatives, rather than one-off running, it was too late for the title holders.
The Blues put their heads together during Saturday's defeat to Moana Pasifika. Photo / Photosport
Lazarus wears red and black
At the end of last season, few would have predicted a return to form by the Crusaders in 2025. What might have been even less expected is that the success of the Crusaders is based on moving the ball wide and running in tries on the flanks by the likes of Sevu Reece, Chay Finaki and a restored Braydon Ennor.
The Waratahs played their hearts out in Sydney on Friday night, knowing they were basically out of the knockout stages if they didn’t win. But as gutsy as the late surge by the Sydney-siders was, the 48-33 winning margin for the Crusaders was a little flattering for the Tahs.
It’s a tribute to Crusaders’ coach Rob Penney that he’s slipped the leash on his men to such a degree that their first thought when they get the ball is to attack, rather than boot it downfield.
Cometh the hours, cometh Johnny McNicholl
Every cliché in sport about big boots to fill could have been applied to 34-year-old Johnny McNicholl. At the weekend, he took over the fullback jersey from the injured Will Jordan, who had given the Crusaders an attacking edge they were missing last year.
If McNicholl looked at home in the Crusaders, it’s hardly surprising. He was born in Christchurch, went to Cashmere High School and was first in the Crusaders’ wider training squad 13 years ago. Add in the fact that he spent seven years with the Scarlets club in Llanelli, ultimately making the Welsh national team, and it’s little wonder that in Sydney he had the confidence to play his natural running game.
From the third minute, when he flew into the line outside Rivez Reihana and scored a classy try, McNicholl was commanding in everything he did.
In Wellington, the lead changed four times, and ultimately it was tries, not penalties, that decided the result. Brilliant solo runs by Canes halfback Cam Roigard saw him score two of the five tries in the match. His display confirmed his place as the form halfback in the country.
His first try came on the back of a storming 20m run in the 48th minute, and his match-winning effort saw him dive into and through the tiniest of defensive gaps on the Highlanders’ tryline.
Heartaches by numbers
The reassuring sight of Jamie Joseph in a tracksuit at Highlanders headquarters over the summer lifted spirits amongst Landers fans. Sadly for southern supporters, the loss to the Canes was yet another heartbreak story for the men from Dunedin. If there’s any justice in rugby, the Landers this season have used up their bad luck, not just for this year, but for all of 2026 too.
Phil Gifford is a Contributing Sports Writer for NZME.
