Leroy Carter bagged a hat-trick as the Chiefs ran riot against Moana Pasifika, scoring nine tries in a 57–24 demolition at FMG Stadium Waikato to open Club Rugby Round in emphatic fashion.
Key moments
3 mins – TRY CHIEFS: The home side struck early from a lineout steal, with Cortez Ratima floating wide to pick out Quinn Tupaea, who flopped over in the corner. Damian McKenzie converted. (Chiefs 7–0)
5 mins – TRY CHIEFS: Simon Parker collected a restart and trucked it up outside the 22. The Chiefs worked left, folding numbers around the corner, with Leroy Carter freeing Liam Coombes-Fabling to stroll in from 30 metres. McKenzie converted. (Chiefs 14–0)
10 mins – TRY MOANA PASIFIKA: Tom Savage claimed the lineout and Moana drove before launching wide. A bounce pass found Glen Vaihu, who straightened and sliced through beside the posts. Jackson Garden-Bachop converted. (Chiefs 14–7)
16 mins – TRY CHIEFS: Naitoa Ah Kuoi rode a tackle well to the left edge before offloading to Jahrome Brown. He drew the defence, freeing Tupaea down the left sideline, who found Carter on the inside to stroll in for his first. McKenzie missed the conversion. (Chiefs 19–7)
22 mins – TRY MOANA PASIFIKA: Big scrum from Moana, and after Ratima slipped, Semisi Tupou Ta’eiloa broke to the left, lined up Tupaea and rolled him over, powering down the left edge. Garden-Bachop converted. (Chiefs 19–14)
30 mins – TRY CHIEFS: McKenzie tidied outside the 22 after a loose ball, going on a jiving crossfield run before finding Brown, who released Emoni Narawa on a hot line. The winger steamed through and rolled in behind the posts. McKenzie converted. (Chiefs 26–14)
32 mins – TRY CHIEFS: Ratima’s box kick spilled loose but McKenzie recovered, kicking in behind and getting a kind bounce. He flicked it out the back for Ratima, who stepped nicely and fed Lalakai Foketi. The centre got airborne and grounded it in the corner for his first Chiefs try. McKenzie missed the conversion. (Chiefs 31–14)
Half-time: Chiefs 31–14. Seven tries in an entertaining first half with defence largely absent. The Chiefs’ slick attack hurt Moana on the edges, with Tupaea and Carter finding plenty of joy on the left. Glen Vaihu and Tupou Ta’eiloa provided bright spots for the visitors, but Moana struggled to gain territory after their early scores.
43 mins – TRY MOANA PASIFIKA: Moana folded numbers to the right, with Allan Craig running hard to the line. Ngani Laumape had a carry before leaving it for Tupou Ta’eiloa, who scooped up a deflected pass and rampaged over for his second. Garden-Bachop missed the conversion. (Chiefs 31–19)
48 mins – TRY CHIEFS: The Chiefs applied pressure through their forwards before Ratima whipped it out the back to McKenzie, who fired a cracking ball into Coombes-Fabling. The fullback drew the defender and passed back inside to Carter, who raced in down the right edge for his second. McKenzie missed the conversion. (Chiefs 36–19)
54 mins – TRY CHIEFS: Samisoni Taukei’aho was stopped short off the lineout drive, but Ratima fed it flat to the left where Carter went low and hard, beating the cover tackle to score in the corner for his hat-trick. McKenzie converted from the sideline. (Chiefs 43–19)
61 mins – TRY CHIEFS: The Chiefs stole possession and spread it wide. Josh Jacomb dropped a chip which sat nicely for Tupaea, who fired left to McKenzie. The playmaker angled back in and found replacement Kyle Brown, who scored with his first touch. McKenzie converted. (Chiefs 50–19)
67 mins – TRY CHIEFS: Tyrone Thompson lobbed to the back of the lineout and the Chiefs got a rolling maul going. Thompson remained patient and powered over in the corner. McKenzie converted from the sideline. (Chiefs 57–19)
79 mins – TRY MOANA PASIFIKA: Joel Lam wrapped around the back and Patrick Pellegrini fired wide to Tevita Ofa, who collected and flopped over in the corner for a consolation. Pellegrini missed the conversion. (Chiefs 57–24)
Full-time: Chiefs 57–24
The electric winger touched down three times — in the 16th, 48th and 54th minutes — as the hosts’ left-edge attack carved through Moana’s defence at will. Carter’s finishing was clinical throughout, but he was far from a one-man show: returning playmaker Damian McKenzie orchestrated proceedings with a masterclass in his first game back from paternity leave.
McKenzie, who had barely a week’s training under his belt following the birth of his son Louie, looked nothing like a sleep-deprived new father. The 30-year-old was at his livewire best from the opening whistle, linking beautifully with fellow paternity returnee Cortez Ratima to tear holes in Moana’s defensive structure.
The Chiefs wasted no time establishing dominance. From a lineout steal in the third minute, Ratima floated wide to pick out Quinn Tupaea, who crashed over in the corner for the opener.
Two minutes later, Simon Parker collected a restart and trucked it up outside the 22. The Chiefs worked left with devastating efficiency, folding numbers around the corner until Carter freed Liam Coombes-Fabling to stroll in untouched from 30 metres. At 14–0 inside six minutes, the writing was already on the wall.
Moana showed glimpses of what they can produce when given space. Fullback Glen Vaihu produced a moment of individual brilliance in the 10th minute, collecting a bounce pass off the back of a lineout drive before straightening up and slicing clean through beside the posts. Jackson Garden-Bachop converted to cut the deficit to 14–7, and for a moment it seemed the visitors might make a game of it.
Carter’s first try arrived in the 16th minute, the product of slick handling down the left edge. Naitoa Ah Kuoi rode a tackle well before offloading to Jahrome Brown, who drew two defenders and freed Tupaea down the sideline. The centre found Carter on the inside, and the winger strolled in untouched.
Moana hit back through No. 8 Semisi Tupou Ta’eiloa, who produced perhaps the try of the match in the 22nd minute. After a dominant scrum, the powerful back-rower broke to the left, lined up Tupaea and simply rolled him over like a bowling pin, powering down the edge to score. Garden-Bachop converted and suddenly it was 19–14 — game on.
But McKenzie’s biggest play of the night swung momentum decisively back to the Chiefs. Lock Allan Craig charged down a Ratima kick and was surging for the line with the try at his mercy. McKenzie, giving away considerable size, used the angle to muscle the much bigger man into touch — a freakish try-saver that seemed to inspire everything that followed.
From there, McKenzie’s fingerprints were on almost every Chiefs try. He tracked back to recover a loose ball near Moana’s line, then produced his trademark jinking crossfield run, slipping out of tackles before finding Brown, who released Emoni Narawa on a hot line. The winger steamed through and rolled in behind the posts for the fourth. McKenzie converted to make it 26–14.
The fifth try was pure McKenzie magic. Ratima’s box kick spilled loose, but the playmaker recovered, kicked in behind and got a kind bounce. He flicked it out the back for Ratima, who stepped nicely before feeding Lalakai Foketi. The former Wallaby got airborne and grounded it in the corner for his first try in Chiefs colours. At 31–14, the bonus point was secured before half-time.
Tupou Ta’eiloa gave Moana hope early in the second stanza, scooping up a deflected pass and rampaging over for his second. But Carter had other ideas. In the 48th minute, the Chiefs applied pressure through their forwards before Ratima whipped it out the back to McKenzie, who fired a cracking ball into Coombes-Fabling. The fullback drew the last defender and passed back inside to Carter, who raced in down the right edge for his second — this time on the opposite wing.
Carter completed his hat-trick six minutes later. Samisoni Taukei’aho was stopped short off a lineout drive, but Ratima fed it flat to the left where Carter went low and hard, beating the cover tackle to score in the corner. McKenzie converted from the sideline to make it 43–19.
The tries kept coming. Replacement Kyle Brown scored with his first touch after a Josh Jacomb chip sat up perfectly for Tupaea, who fired left to McKenzie. The playmaker angled back in and found Brown sliding in behind the posts. Thompson then powered over from a rolling maul to bring up 57 points, before Tevita Ofa’s late consolation rounded out the scoring.
For head coach Jono Gibbes, there will be concerns about discipline — the Chiefs conceded 16 penalties to Moana’s seven, including several in the red zone. They also lost three forwards to injury in the first half, with Samipeni Finau and Kaylum Boshier suffering head knocks before prop Benet Kumeroa limped off.
But the attacking display will please him immensely. Despite having just 10 entries into Moana’s 22 compared to the visitors’ 11, the Chiefs were ruthlessly clinical, their 71% ruck speed in the 0–3 second bracket giving them quick ball to exploit Moana’s fragile defence. Moana’s lineout troubles compounded their woes, losing seven of their 20 throws.
The Chiefs now head into their bye week sitting second on the ladder before a trip to Canberra to face the competition-leading Brumbies. For Moana Pasifika, now winless in all six meetings with the Chiefs, the search for answers continues as head coach Tana Umaga looks to arrest a slide that has seen them concede 122 points in their last three matches.
Teams
Chiefs: 15 Liam Coombes-Fabling, 14 Emoni Narawa, 13 Lalakai Foketi, 12 Quinn Tupaea, 11 Leroy Carter, 10 Damian McKenzie, 9 Cortez Ratima, 8 Simon Parker, 7 Jahrome Brown, 6 Samipeni Finau, 5 Tupou Vaa’i (c), 4 Naitoa Ah Kuoi, 3 Reuben O’Neill, 2 Samisoni Taukei’aho, 1 Benet Kumeroa.
Replacements: 16 Tyrone Thompson, 17 Ollie Norris, 18 George Dyer, 19 Josh Lord, 20 Kaylum Boshier, 21 Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi, 22 Josh Jacomb, 23 Kyle Brown.
Moana Pasifika: 15 Glen Vaihu, 14 Tevita Ofa, 13 Tevita Latu, 12 Ngani Laumape, 11 Solomon Alaimalo, 10 Jackson Garden-Bachop, 9 Augustine Pulu, 8 Semisi Tupou Ta’eiloa, 7 Semisi Paea, 6 Miracle Faiilagi (c), 5 Allan Craig, 4 Tom Savage, 3 Chris Apoua, 2 Millennium Sanerivi, 1 Abraham Pole.
Replacements: 16 Samiuela Moli, 17 Malakai Hala-Ngatai, 18 Lolani Faleiva, 19 Ofa Tauatevalu, 20 Ola Tauelangi, 21 Joel Lam, 22 Patrick Pellegrini, 23 Tyler Pulini.
Match details
Chiefs 57 (Tries: Carter 3, Tupaea, Coombes-Fabling, Narawa, Foketi, Brown, Thompson; Conversions: McKenzie 6/9)
Moana Pasifika 24 (Tries: Tupou Ta’eiloa 2, Vaihu, Ofa; Conversions: Garden-Bachop 2/3, Pellegrini 0/1)
Half-time: 31–14
Venue: FMG Stadium Waikato, Hamilton
Attendance: 9,020
Referee: Todd Petrie (New Zealand)
Assistant Referees: Maggie Cogger-Orr, Warwick Lahmert
TMO: Richard Kelly
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