Ben Lam of the Hurricanes scores his fourth try during the round seven Super Rugby match between the Rebels and the Hurricanes. Photo / Photosport.co.nz
Ben Lam of the Hurricanes scores his fourth try during the round seven Super Rugby match between the Rebels and the Hurricanes. Photo / Photosport.co.nz
Not that there was much doubt before, but by pulling off their miracle escape against the Sharks, the Hurricanes have firmed their status as Super Rugby champions in waiting.
They have beaten the Crusaders and Highlanders in bruising and tense local derbies, and ripped apart the Rebels, but it wasthe way they won in Napier that sits as their most telling moment of the season so far.
Could any other side in the competition have conjured a win from such a position…six points down and time up on the clock? Could any other side have retained the ball for so long, continued to believe in themselves and manufactured a try five minutes after the hooter the way the Hurricanes did?
Not only that, but the Hurricanes managed to score their critical try on a night when their game had been littered with mistakes and uncertainty in the previous 80 minutes.
Somehow, despite not being anywhere close to their true selves, they found a way to win and the old adage that only really good sides can win when they play badly rang true.
Only really good sides with strong cultures can cope with last adjustments such as Beauden Barrett scratching so late in the build-up due to a tight thigh.
And culture – defined by unity, commitment and understanding - is really what the Hurricanes have found in the last couple of years and why they have been such a consistent force.
Think back to the Hurricanes of yesteryear and what defined them was their unpredictability. They were famously erratic, brilliant one week and then unrecognisable the next.
Hurricanes Ben Lam scores a try as he is tackled by Highlanders Aaron Smith and Lima Sopoaga during the Hurricanes vs Highlanders Super Rugby match at the Westpac Stadium. Photo / Photosport.co.nz
They had flair but so little graft. Not now. Since Chris Boyd and John Plumtree arrived in 2015, they have instilled in the players not only a fierce commitment to the jersey, but a realisation that it has to be always and not sometimes.
The most telling evidence of the strength of the culture the current coaching team have built is the loyalty of the players.
Dane Coles was willing to play in the 2016 Super Rugby final with broken ribs such was his desire to be part of the club's most momentous day.
TJ Perenara and Beauden Barrett have been hunted by clubs across New Zealand and around the world but they were never going to do anything other than sign long term deals to play for the Hurricanes.
Julian Savea had the chance to move on after last year and try to rekindle his career elsewhere. But it didn't take him long to reject the idea and decide that if he was going to win a test recall, the Hurricanes would be the best place from which to try.
What the Hurricanes have also done well is rejuvenate or kick-start a handful of careers and develop players such as Vince Aso, Nagni Laumape and Ben Lam way beyond expectation.
Aso wasn't lighting any fires in Auckland, but look at him now. He's a damaging presence in the midfield or on the wing.
Laumape was drifting along at the Warriors when the Hurricanes pounced and while his background was in rugby rather than league, it's never easy for players to successfully switch codes.
But look at Laumape now. He's the form second-five in the country, playing that role of straight running, destructive force as well as one of the great Hurricanes, Ma'a Nonu, ever did.
And as for Lam, he's been a revelation. He played a handful of games for the Blues a few years back, but who would remember?
Shifting to Wellington has transformed him into a genuine All Blacks contender and while some of his form can be put down to an injury-free run, most of it is because he's in an environment that connects with him.
If there is one player above all others, though, who perhaps best typifies what the Hurricanes are all about under this coaching regime, it is Michael Fatialofa.
He doesn't bring anything subtle or intricate to the party. He's willing to restrict himself to winning lineout ball, carrying the ball and tackling with a thumping intensity.
There's an honesty to his game that reveals an astonishing depth of commitment and it is the simplicity of it which makes him so valuable.
And the beauty for the Hurricanes is that they have the security of continuity, knowing as they do that assistant coach Plumtree will take over next year when Boyd moves to Northampton.
The players already in the squad and those aspiring to be there can project three years down the track now and be confident the Hurricanes can sustain what they have.
Once renowned for their unpredictability, the Hurricanes are now the most stable and consistent club in the country.
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