Angus Ta'avao of Highlanders and Vaiolini Ekausi of Force clash. Photo / Getty Images
Highlanders 39
Force 31
It’s safe to say the Highlanders have endured a week of chaos, but they’ve put that behind them to secure a much-needed Super Rugby Pacific win over the Western Force, despite playing the last seven minutes with 14 men.
They’ve come away with a 39-31 win in front of a packed Dunedin crowd, full of students for Orientation Week, but they were made to work hard in a lively contest that featured plenty of running and momentum swings.
The Highlanders showed plenty of grit and determination, finishing the contest a man down after centre Jonah Lowe, who had scored two tries in the match, was forced from the field with a shoulder injury. The Highlanders had used all their substitutes at that stage and were unable to bring on a replacement.
The result means the Highlanders snap a two-game losing streak and the second win of their season puts a challenging few days behind them after coach Jamie Joseph missed out on the All Blacks’ coaching role and prop Angus Ta’avao returned to the side after the death of his son.
“Really proud of the effort,” Highlanders co-captain Timoci Tavatavanawai told Sky Sport.
“It’s a chaos week for us, but feel for our coach and we’re grateful that we have him for the next few years.
“We have Gus [Ta’avao] back in the team [to] bring a lot of excitement and energy to the team. We owe it to him to get the win today and it’s special.”
The Highlanders dominated the opening exchanges and opened the scoring in bizarre fashion when Western Force halfback Nathan Hastie’s box kick bounced backwards into the hands of Cam Millar. That allowed the hosts to launch a break, with Folau Fakatava putting Veveni Lasaqa over in the corner.
The Highlanders kicked a penalty goal to extend their lead, but there was a momentum swing and the Force got on the board when New Zealand-born backrower Vaiolini Ekuasi dived over close to the line.
The Highlanders were finding plenty of space on the edges and an attack down the right by Lowe allowed the Highlanders to claim their second try.
The hosts looked set to head into the break in control, but they were left shellshocked with the Force scoring two tries in four minutes to silence the crowd.
First, Jeremy Williams crashed over from close range, before Ben Donaldson made a mid-field break to find Hamish Stewart, who scored near the posts to give the Force a 21-17 lead at the break.
The Highlanders regained the lead in the 54th minute when Lowe ran on to an excellent grubber from Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens to score his second before Caleb Tangitau was left unmarked on the wing to score the side’s fourth of the match.
The Force refused to budge and regained the lead with two quick tries through Carlo Tizzano, who scored off a rolling maul, and former All Black George Bridge, who found his way over in the corner.
The Highlanders responded immediately through a counter-attack that started with a chip and chase by Jonah Nareki, which he regathered and was stopped just short of the line. Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens then chipped to the corner to find an unmarked Tangitau for his second score.
Shortly after, Lowe went off and with the game in the balance there were some tense moments from both teams, but a late penalty goal from Reesjan Pasitoa sealed the win for the Highlanders.
The Highlanders are back in action next week against the Crusaders in Christchurch.
Highlanders 39 (Veveni Lasaqa, Jonah Lowe 2, Caleb Tangitau 2 tries; Cameron Millar 3 con, pen, Reesjan Pasitoa con, pen)
Western Force 31 (Vaiolini Ekuasi, Jeremy Williams, Hamish Stewart, Carlo Tizzano, George Bridge tries; Ben Donaldson 3 con)
HT: 17-21
Ben Francis is an Auckland-based reporter for the New Zealand Herald who covers breaking sports news.