Following a 24-20 victory over the Highlanders in the Super Rugby Pacific clash at Sky Stadium on Friday, here are the player ratings for the Hurricanes.
15 Callum Harkin: Has enjoyed a very good season but he was well shackled by the Highlanders. Harkin constantly looked to get involved and he had a try ruled out for a knock-on, but he’s had more effective games in 2025. 6
14 Bailyn Sullivan: Scored a try early on but was forced off soon afterwards which resulted in the excellent Fehi Fineanganofo coming on. N/A
13 Billy Proctor (cc): A mixed game from the centre. Plenty touting him to replace Rieko Ioane but he will need to be far better. There was an improvement after the break but Proctor was not a standout. 6
12 Riley Higgins: Very quiet, particularly after the break. Perhaps suffered due to the sheer amount of ball players the Hurricanes had in the second half as play seemed to pass him by. 5
11 Ngatungane Punivai: Another player who will have better games as the Highlanders defence were effective in stopping the ‘Canes threats. He was eventually replaced at half-time. 5
Contrasting performances
10 Ruben Love: A poor first half, which duly prompted the coaches to bring Brett Cameron on, but Love very much found his form when taken out of the key decision-making role. Love was excellent in the second period and his break late on was key to the Hurricanes winning the match. 7
9 Cam Roigard: Like his playmaking partner, Roigard faltered before the interval, but he was his side’s key man in the final 40 minutes. The scrum-half’s service was slick while he tested the fringes far more, leading to a brace of tries. He’s the favourite to take the nine shirt in July and his second half performance demonstrated why. 8
8 Brayden Iose: The Hurricanes suffered a couple of injury blows in the first quarter with Iose the other to go off, forcing a reshuffle in the back-row. N/A
7 Peter Lakai: A busy effort on both sides of the ball as he competed hard in both attack and defence. Lakai has had better games, but he was still effective in what he did throughout. 7
6 Brad Shields (cc) Probably the best of the starting back-rowers as Shields did some fine work at close quarters. Prominent both with and without the ball as he led from the front. 7
Lineout issues
5 Isaia Walker-Leawere: The lock was physical but the lineout was an issue and that caused huge problems for the Hurricanes throughout the match. 5
4 Zach Gallagher: See Walker-Leawere. Gallagher did win his fair share of the ball but it was rarely clean due to the effectiveness of the Highlanders locks. 5
3 Pasilio Tosi: One rumble aside, most of the tighthead’s work was confined to the set-piece where he was solid against fellow All Black Ethan de Groot. 6
2 Asafo Aumua (cc): Scott Robertson will demand better from his hooker after Aumua struggled in the set-piece. While the second-rows have to take some of the blame blame, the All Black was not accurate enough with his throwing. There was some good work in the loose, but the set-piece is vital at Test level. 5
1 Xavier Numia: Like Tosi, he did his job well in the scrum but he wasn’t a prominent carrier for the team. Was busy in defence, however, in a solid day at the office. 6
Replacements: Quite simply changed the game. Du’Plessis Kirifi and Fineanganofo came on in the first half and were excellent, while in the second, Cameron gave them some control at fly-half. A word too for the props, Pouri Rakete-Stones and Tevita Mafileo, who got on top in the scrum. 8
Src: Planetrugby.com - https://www.planetrugby.com/news/hurricanes-player-ratings-rieko-ioanes-all-blacks-spot-safe-for-now-after-contenders-mixed-game-while-test-star-shows-class
