Rugby: Highlanders the solitary winners in grim haul

The Hurricanes slumped to their fourth straight defeat against the Sharks on Saturday. Photo / Getty Images

A solitary victory to the Highlanders - and that a very patchy one - was the grim New Zealand haul from the latest round of the Super 14.

The Hurricanes fell to their fourth straight defeat, with a fifth looking inevitable when they host the Crusaders at the Cake Tin on Good Friday.

Their campaign is already in trouble and the playoffs will be a mirage unless they pick up form this week.

That task will be onerous, as the in-form Crusaders enjoyed the luxury of a bye week to refuel their energies and repair their minimal wounded list.

There is a bewildered look about the Hurricanes' production and selections. Ma'a Nonu's impact mirrors the team's delivery - destructive one minute, haphazard the next.

The style and selection strategies have fluctuated alarmingly since their steady, deliberate start to the season.

Skipper Andrew Hore and Conrad Smith have been strong points in the forwards and backs but there has not been too much in between to join those influential dots.

The Hurricanes rediscovered some venom for the last 15 minutes of their Sharks match, then conceded victory to a Ruan Pienaar penalty.

The Blues and Chiefs slid to their third defeats after both looked as though they might escape their transtasman jousts with deadlocks in Sydney and Canberra.

Neither played with enough consistency but they showed better resolve until they were both broken late in their matches.

There was consternation from the Chiefs that halfback Junior Polueleuiga was obstructed when the Brumbies claimed loose scrum possession for Matt Toomua to score the winning try.

The visitors had been under huge pressure for almost all the second half as the Brumbies showed an inability to score and the Chiefs displayed their tenacity.

Coach Ian Foster was not despondent. He noted the third successive defeat had been by a close margin.

"The attitude and tightness in terms of defending the goal-line for so long is something I'm very proud of," he said. "We've just got to get our execution a bit sharper."

He also has to check on a growing injury list with Aled de Malmanche not available for Saturday's match at Mt Maunganui against the Highlanders because of a broken thumb, while Sitiveni Sivivatu is struggling with a knee injury.

"Primarily our three losses have come about because we have lost the territory and possession battles," Foster added. "That can't continue if we want to reach our potential."