Hurricanes by name and nature

Hurricanes wing Ma'a Nonu. Picture / Mark Mitchell

The branding is no longer a misnomer and at last the marketing men can ditch plans to rename the Hurricanes 'Slightly Breezy'.

As the Brumbies discovered last night, opposition teams now come to Wellington to be ground down by controlled and deliberate football and the odd touch of maverick. Only then are they blown away by instinctive rugby designed on the hoof.

The champagne may have flowed in the final quarter, but this was a victory only made possible by laying foundation stones of patience, ball retention and adherence to the gameplan.

While the 'Canes laid down a top four challenge, the Waratahs are the only certainty, guaranteed a place in the semi-finals. The Crusaders are just about safe and will be if they beat the Highlanders this Saturday. That would leave the Highlanders, Blues, Hurricanes and Bulls scrapping for the remaining two places. The Blues need to beat both the Hurricanes and Waratahs in Sydney on May 13 and pick up two bonus points in the process to be assured of making the last four. The Hurricanes could lose to the Blues but still make it if they pick up a bonus point in Auckland and then beat the Crusaders and score four tries.

Such results seemed possible after last night when Joe McDonnell, Jerry Collins and Rodney So'oialo provided the control and Jimmy Gopperth, Conrad Smith and Ma'a Nonu the creative icing. Well, to be strictly accurate Nonu wasn't so much creative as utterly destructive, running over anything stupid enough to believe it could bring him down.

His hat-trick was an emphatic message to the All Black selectors that he's ready to see if there are any Lions game enough to hunt him down.

If some of the romance and fun of the Hurricanes has been lost in this transition to a more rounded package, no one in the capital has noticed as the hordes just can't keep away.

And it's this new-found dogged resolve that allowed the Hurricanes to patiently breakdown the Brumbies last night.

Anton Oliver can probably also lay claim to having had a hand in the win last night. Last week the Highlanders captain accused the Hurricanes of playing dumb rugby - kicking too much when they should have been looking to work the ball to Nonu, a man Oliver somewhat sagely described as the best runner in New Zealand rugby.

The Brumbies are slipping from grace faster than the Beckhams but they were organised and aggressive round the fringes last night and frequently put the first Hurricane receiver under intense pressure.

The Hurricanes of old would have sought a high-risk, ultimately doomed solution to the same predicament.

The Hurricanes of last week would have kicked the ball away. Last night they simply held onto the ball and waited for support. McDonnell was often the man to stay on his feet long enough for the cavalry to get there.

Even when they were going backwards, the Hurricanes stayed calm and resisted the temptation to throw silly passes or kill the ball on the ground.

When they realised they still had possession, they were very smart about using it. Both first half tries came after weathering onslaughts and then exploiting the inevitable numerical advantage.

The second score by Lome Fa'atau just before half-time demonstrated perfectly the value of having a clever thinker in the No 13 jersey. Smith saw where the hole was going to open and then set himself carefully before delivering the try-scoring pass. Eventually the Hurricanes constant hammering finally broke the Brumbies down and the gates opened midway through the second half with Nonu, Hosea Gear and Isaac Boss completing the rout.


- HERALD ON SUNDAY