As kickoff approached for the Super Rugby Pacific final, there was an air of anticipation around Eden Park.
A strong contingent of Chiefs fans had made the drive up the Waikato Expressway; the sound of cowbells rang out and flags of both teams were waved proudly among the 44,035-strongcrowd.
But the Blues moved quickly to turn that anticipation into elation for the home fans and devastation for the visitors, imposing their physical, possession-focused game plan with aplomb in a 41-10 win. They put the foot down early, and further pressed it down on the throats of their rival as the minutes ticked on.
“Not our day really, was it? We barely fired a shot,” Chiefs coach Clayton McMillan said after the game.
“It was disappointing for the boys who had put in a lot of hard work, disappointing for our fans who travelled up State Highway 1. To go out with a bit of a whimper was disappointing, but I’m still incredibly proud of this team.”
For the second year in a row, McMillan had to give a press conference as the losing coach in the final. But they were two very different games.
Against the Crusaders last year, the Chiefs threw plenty at the opposition and had their chances to win. This year, the Blues didn’t let them into the contest. McMillan credited the Blues for being able to successfully starve his side of possession.
“I don’t want to be sitting here every year talking about a losing final. It sucks. But it takes a lot of effort and hard work to get to a final. There are plenty of teams sitting at home wishing they were here but we feel like we earned the right to be here, we just encountered a better team on the day,” he said.
The Blues had 67 per cent of the possession in the final. Photo / Photosport
“The sheer weight of possession - we [were] lucky to get 30 per cent possession, a lot of it was in the wrong parts of the field, some of that we contributed to through our own inaccuracy and with that sheer weight of possession it just starts to take its toll.
“We just didn’t fire enough bullets to put pressure back on them. But give credit to [Blues coach] Vern [Cotter], because he’s come here, recognised the athletes that he’s got, flipped the script on the ways the Blues have traditionally played and it’s paid huge dividends.”
But it was another year of growth for McMillan’s team, who returned to the competition’s biggest stage despite losing the services of several of the club’s starters, including Brad Weber, Brodie Retallick and Sam Cane.
That was something McMillan took pride in and he said believed the Chiefs would earn the right to hoist the trophy again in the years ahead.
“Statistically, we’re the youngest team in the competition,” McMillan noted.
“We’re going to continue to get better and we’ll eventually win one. There’s no doubt in my mind about that.”
Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.
