The 30th season of Super Rugby Pacific began with a seismic upset as the Highlanders toppled defending champions the Crusaders 25-23 at Forsyth Barr Stadium, Cameron Millar’s nerveless 79th-minute penalty completing a remarkable turnaround for last year’s wooden spooners.
Key moments
3 mins – PENALTY HIGHLANDERS: Cameron Millar opens the scoring after Christian Lio-Willie spills the kickoff receipt. The Highlanders win an early scrum and draw an offside penalty, with Millar slotting the simple shot from in front. (Highlanders 3-0 Crusaders)
15 mins – TRY HIGHLANDERS: Caleb Tangitau scores the first try of the 2026 Super Rugby Pacific season with devastating effect. Off a lineout, Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens finds space and offloads to Tangitau, who burns past Chay Fihaki and Rivez Reihana on a 20-metre blast to score in the corner. Cameron Millar’s conversion drifts wide. (Highlanders 8-0 Crusaders)
19 mins – TRY CRUSADERS: Noah Hotham strikes back for the visitors with a clever individual try. Sevu Reece pounces on a loose ball after a contestable kick goes wrong for the Highlanders, linking with Ethan Blackadder who drives deep into Highlanders territory. Hotham spots the vacant blindside and sprints 30 metres untouched to score. Rivez Reihana converts from wide. (Highlanders 8-7 Crusaders)
40 mins – PENALTY CRUSADERS: Rivez Reihana gives the Crusaders the lead at the break after Timoci Tavatavanawai is penalised for offside in the dying moments of the half. (Highlanders 8-10 Crusaders)
Half-time: Highlanders 8-10 Crusaders. Highlanders dominate territory with 71% in opening 30 minutes but Crusaders edge possession at 52%. Both teams struggle with handling—17 errors across both sides before the break, with the Crusaders most culpable. Highlanders lineout scratchy with four mistakes.
42 mins – PENALTY CRUSADERS: Ethan Blackadder wins a turnover straight from the restart and Rivez Reihana extends the lead from 35 metres. (Highlanders 8-13 Crusaders)
45 mins – TRY HIGHLANDERS: Angus Ta’avao crashes over on his first touch for his new club. Jonah Lowe breaks the line in midfield before Folau Fakatava delivers quick ball. Ta’avao finds an acre of space after Te Kamaka Howden’s decoy run wrong-foots Jamie Hannah and crashes over near the posts. Cameron Millar converts. (Highlanders 15-13 Crusaders)
49 mins – TRY HIGHLANDERS: Jonah Lowe finishes off the try of the match—a stunning 80-metre team movement. Oliver Haig wins the ball at the lineout on his side, and co-captain Timoci Tavatavanawai bursts past Braydon Ennor with brute strength, offloading out of contact to Jona Nareki. The winger draws fullback Chay Fihaki before releasing Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens down the touchline. Lowe arrives on the inside to finish. Cameron Millar converts from the sideline. (Highlanders 22-13 Crusaders)
50 mins – CRUSADERS BENCH: Rob Penney empties his bench, introducing All Blacks Codie Taylor, George Bower, Fletcher Newell, Corey Kellow and Will Jordan. (Highlanders 22-13 Crusaders)
61 mins – TRY CRUSADERS: Will Jordan’s class proves too much. Off a stable scrum platform, the ball is shifted left and Jordan receives from Taha Kemara with defenders in front. He steps sharply off his left foot, slips through three tacklers and reaches out to score his 48th try for the club—moving into third on the Crusaders’ all-time list. Taha Kemara converts from a tricky angle. (Highlanders 22-20 Crusaders)
67 mins – JORDAN BREAK: Will Jordan takes a mark, taps quickly and surges the length of the field before kicking in behind to force a goal-line dropout. The Crusaders’ pressure building. (Highlanders 22-20 Crusaders)
71 mins – PENALTY CRUSADERS: Will Jordan is caught high and Taha Kemara remains cool under pressure, slotting from in front to give the defending champions the lead with nine minutes remaining. (Highlanders 22-23 Crusaders)
79 mins – PENALTY HIGHLANDERS: The match-winner. Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens chips ahead and is taken out illegally by Codie Taylor, who changes his line to check the fullback. Cameron Millar, from 48 metres—having missed a crucial kick against the Crusaders in Christchurch last season—makes no mistake with 90 seconds remaining. (Highlanders 25-23 Crusaders)
80+ mins – KNOCKED ON: The Crusaders have one last chance from the restart, winning a scrum with seconds remaining. They launch a final sequence from just inside halfway, carrying hard through the middle, but Taha Kemara loses the ball in contact and referee Angus Gardner blows for full-time.
Full-time: Highlanders 25-23 Crusaders
With injured All Blacks lock Fabian Holland watching on from the stands after being ruled out for the season with a dislocated shoulder, the Highlanders made their way onto the field hoping to make a statement against the defending champions. They did precisely that.
The Highlanders, roared on by a packed Zoo, made their intentions clear from the opening whistle. Christian Lio-Willie’s failure to gather the kickoff handed the hosts immediate territory, and though they could only manufacture three points through Millar’s boot, the tone was set.
Jamie Joseph’s men continued to ask questions, and smart breakdown work in the opening 15 minutes—with Jack Taylor, debutant Lucas Casey, and Timoci Tavatavanawai prominent—got the Highlanders clear of early Crusaders surges. Their reward came through a moment of individual brilliance. Off a lineout, the ball moved through hands somewhat awkwardly, but Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens gathered on the fly and found Caleb Tangitau with space to burn. The winger, whose name has featured prominently in All Blacks discussions, scorched around Chay Fihaki and Rivez Reihana on a 20-metre blast to dot down in the corner and open the competition’s try-scoring account.
The Crusaders, however, are not 13-time champions for nothing. They responded within four minutes through Noah Hotham—gamely sporting a new bleached hairstyle—who exploited a vacant blindside after Sevu Reece pounced on a loose ball from a contestable kick and linked with Ethan Blackadder. Once Hotham pinned his ears back with the try line in sight, there was never any doubt. Reihana’s conversion from the touchline levelled proceedings before his penalty on the stroke of halftime gave the visitors a slender 10-8 advantage.
Referee Angus Gardner involved himself smartly throughout, giving crisp directions to keep players clear and the ball in play.
The second half began ominously for the Highlanders when Blackadder won a turnover from the restart and Reihana extended the lead to five points. Rob Penney’s men appeared to be grinding their way towards another victory, just as they had done so many times before.
But the Highlanders had other ideas.
A tactical masterstroke from Joseph saw props Ethan de Groot and Angus Ta’avao introduced at halftime, and the latter made an immediate impact. Jonah Lowe’s powerful carry through midfield created the platform, and when Folau Fakatava delivered quick ball, Ta’avao found himself in an acre of space after Te Kamaka Howden’s decoy run befuddled Hannah. The prop needed no second invitation, crashing over to restore the Highlanders’ lead.
Four minutes later, the home side produced the try of the match. Oliver Haig’s tip at the lineout gave the Highlanders possession in their own half, and what followed was breathtaking. Co-captain Timoci Tavatavanawai, celebrating his 50th Super Rugby appearance, burst past Ennor and offloaded out of contact to find Jona Nareki in support. The winger’s vision then released Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens down the touchline, and Lowe arrived on the inside shoulder to complete the 80-metre movement. Millar’s conversion stretched the advantage to nine points with half an hour remaining.
Enter Will Jordan. The All Blacks star, introduced early in the second half as Penney emptied his bench, had already shown glimpses of his class with a scintillating counter-attack from a mark that took him the length of the field before forcing a goal-line dropout. But his 61st-minute try demonstrated why he remains one of the most dangerous finishers in world rugby. Receiving from Taha Kemara some 20 metres out, Jordan appeared covered, only to step sharply off his left foot and slip through three defenders to score his 48th try for the club—moving into third on the Crusaders’ all-time list.
Kemara’s conversion made it a two-point game, and when the first five-eighth added a penalty on 71 minutes after a high tackle on Jordan, the Crusaders had somehow wrestled back the lead with less than ten minutes remaining.
The script appeared written. The Crusaders had done this countless times before—absorbing pressure, weathering storms, and finding a way to win when it mattered most.
But Millar had other ideas.
With 90 seconds on the clock, Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens uncorked a chip over the top. Codie Taylor, perhaps carrying a little summer rust having moments earlier fluffed a straightforward pass that would have put Fihaki over, changed his line and collected the fullback illegally. Referee Angus Gardner pointed to the spot.
From 48 metres out, with the weight of expectation bearing down, Millar—who had missed a crucial kick against the Crusaders in Christchurch last season—struck the penalty sweetly. The Zoo roared its approval before the ball had even crossed the uprights, and when the Crusaders’ last-gasp attack ended with Kemara spilling in contact after the hooter, pandemonium ensued.
For Blackadder, who was arguably the best player on the park with his relentless work at the breakdown, and Jordan, whose second-half cameo so nearly proved decisive, there was only disappointment. Sixteen of the Crusaders’ 23 had featured in last year’s grand final triumph, yet they could not find a way past a Highlanders side playing with freedom and intent.
Among the home side’s standouts, Howden was immense at blindside flanker, while Tavatavanawai’s leadership in his milestone match proved invaluable. In the backs, Tangitau and Nareki caused problems throughout, and Millar’s composure under pressure marked him as a player to watch this season.
The Crusaders will need to address their handling—they coughed up possession at crucial moments throughout—and their discipline, which allowed the Highlanders into the game repeatedly. The good news for Penney is that Scott Barrett, Tamaiti Williams, and others will bolster the squad as the season progresses.
For Joseph, whose name is linked to the vacant All Blacks coaching position, this was a perfect start—his CV receiving another timely boost. The Highlanders may have finished bottom of the table last year, but on this evidence, they are a side transformed.
The Crusaders’ error count told the story: 17 handling errors across both teams before the break, with the visitors most culpable. Lio-Willie’s opening-minute spill set an unfortunate tone, and when attack coach James Marshall had spoken pre-season about his team’s skill set being what set them apart, he could hardly have envisaged such a catalogue of fumbles. Ennor, Fainga’anuku and Lio-Willie were all guilty of coughing up possession at crucial moments.
What they said
David Havili, Crusaders captain: “The Highlanders did a great job at the breakdown; they beat us in that area tonight. They showed the physicality you need to finish off the opportunities. We lacked skillset, we had opportunities to score but they put us under a lot of pressure in our set piece. We don’t take any team lightly and we got beaten by the better team tonight. We need to dig deep and look where we can be better.”
Rob Penney, Crusaders head coach: “We’re really disappointed. Great credit to the Highlanders, they always front up and it’s a credit to their organisation. Our accuracy was poor—we had over a dozen errors around halftime which got worse in the second half. We started to get a bit of flow on then gave away a few silly penalties. We were second today, no doubt.”
Match details
Highlanders 25 (Tries: Caleb Tangitau, Angus Ta’avao, Jonah Lowe; Conversions: Cameron Millar 2/3; Penalties: Cameron Millar 2/2)
Crusaders 23 (Tries: Noah Hotham, Will Jordan; Conversions: Rivez Reihana 1/1, Taha Kemara 1/1; Penalties: Rivez Reihana 2/2, Taha Kemara 1/1)
Halftime: 8-10
Venue: Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
Referee: Angus Gardner (Australia)
Assistant Referees: George Myers, Matt Kellahan
TMO: Graham Cooper
Attendance: 15,000
What’s next
The Highlanders remain at Forsyth Barr Stadium next week to host the Chiefs, looking to build on this momentum against another title contender. The Crusaders return home to Apollo Projects Stadium on Sunday 22 February to face the Brumbies, knowing they must sharpen their execution as they look ahead to the grand opening of One NZ Stadium later in the season.
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