Hurricanes v Chiefs Stat Attack (semi-final)

Billy Proctor scores his try in the corner late in the match on Saturday against the Chiefs.

The Hurricanes met the Chiefs in Wellington this past Saturday afternoon. Some facts and figures from that fixture by Peter Marriott below.

Semifinal v Chiefs: Lost 19-30

The Hurricanes have now taken part in 12 Semifinal matches:

1997 v Brumbies in Canberra: Lost 20-33
2003 v Crusaders in Christchurch: Lost 16-39
2005 v Crusaders in Christchurch: Lost 7-47
2006 v Waratahs in Wellington: Won 16-14
2008 v Crusaders in Christchurch: Lost 22-33
2009 v Chiefs in Hamilton: Lost 10-14
2015 v Brumbies in Wellington: Won 29-9
2016 v Chiefs in Wellington: Won 25-9
2017 v Lions in Johannesburg: Lost 29-44
2018 v Crusaders in Christchurch: Lost 12-30
2019 v Crusaders in Christchurch: Lost 26-30
2024 v Chiefs in Wellington: Lost 19-30

They have won just three times and lost on the other nine occasions. Prior to being beaten in this Semifinal the Hurricanes had never lost any of their three previous home Semifinals.

The opposition sides in all three of the Hurricanes last Semifinal matches have scored 30 points. Opposition sides have also scored 33 points, 14 points and nine points in a match on two separate occasions.

This was the Chiefs ninth appearance in a Semifinal. It was the fifth time they have won but the first time it has been away from home. All four previous wins have been in Hamilton. On two of those occasions they went on to win the Final, both times in Hamilton: in 2012 against the Sharks and 2013 against the Brumbies. They play the Blues in this year’s Final in Auckland. A win will be the Chiefs first victory in a Final away from home.

The Hurricanes have won 49 and lost 36 matches at home venues against all the other New Zealand sides.

They have won 36 and lost 49 matches at away venues against all the other New Zealand sides.

The Hurricanes and the Chiefs have now met on 46 occasions. The Hurricanes have won 23 matches and the Chiefs 21. There have been two draws.

Those 46 matches against the Chiefs is a new Hurricanes record for most matches played against anotherfranchise. They have played the Crusaders 45 times.

This was the first time the Hurricanes had trailed the Chiefs at halftime in Wellington since being down 10-13 after 40 minutes in 2015. The home side eventually won that match 22-18.

The Hurricanes have only been behind at halftime on three occasions this season. They were the three matches they lost.

The Hurricanes have hosted the Chiefs 25 times for 15 wins and 10 losses. Four of those losses have been in the last five matches played in Wellington.

Before the match the Hurricanes record for most tries scored against another side was 135, against both the Chiefs and the Highlanders. Their three tries in the match means their new outright record for most tries is 138, against the Chiefs.

By the end of the match the Hurricanes had extended their total points scored against the Chiefs to 1109. This is their new overall record for most points against another side beating the 1094 they have scored against the Highlanders.

The Hurricanes lost their first home match of the season having won the previous seven in a row. Six of those matches were in Wellington and one in Palmerston North. The loss to the Chiefs also brought to an end nine successive wins in Wellington which included the final three matches of 2023 at Sky Stadium. Prior to that winning sequence the Hurricanes last loss in the Capital had been to the Chiefs: 17-33 on 15 April 2023.

The three losses by the Hurricanes in the 16 matches they played in 2024 equalled their record for the fewest defeats in a season. They also lost three times in 2015, from 18 games. Their “biggest” loss that year was the Final against the Highlanders in Wellington.

The Hurricanes finished their season with 80 tries which has only been bettered by the 97 they scored in 2017.

The Hurricanes successfully kicked 10 penalties (from 15 attempts) in 2024. This is the fewest they have ever kicked in a season: in 2017 the total was 13.

The Hurricanes aggregated 546 points this season, a total second only to the 660 points accumulated in 2017.

The Hurricanes had 14 penalties kicked against them this season. This equals their record low of 14 in 2021.

The Hurricanes made four changes to their starting XV against the Chiefs from the one which started the Quarterfinal against the Rebels last week. There was one change in the backs and three in the forwards.

This was the third match in a row no attempt was made by the Hurricanes to kick a penalty. In fact, they did not attempt to kick a penalty in eight of their matches and on three other occasions just one was attempted.

All three kicks were successful.

Clark Laidlaw became the fourth Hurricanes coach to take his side to the Semifinals in his first year in charge. The three before him were Colin Cooper (2003), Chris Boyd (2015) and John Plumtree (2019). There were three try scorers for the Hurricanes in the Semifinal.

For Peter Lakai it was his sixth try in 22 matches. It was his first against the Chiefs.

Brett Cameron’s try was his third in 33 matches and also his first against the Chiefs. Prior to this match Cameron had scored 97 points for the season. His first conversion took his tally to 99 but his second-half try brought up 100 points in 2024 and by converting his own try Brett Cameron finished the season with 106 points. His previous best year was 2023 when he totalled 41 points. In 20 matches for the Hurricanes
Cameron has scored 147 points and with the 19 he scored while he was at the Crusaders his overall tallyis 166 points.

Cameron tallied 30 points in his three matches against the Chiefs this season.

By being the Hurricanes top point scorer this year, Brett Cameron has become the first player who is not Barrett to achieve this feat since Aaron Cruden top scored in 2011 with 112 points. The list which follows reads, 2012: Beauden Barrett 197 points, 2013: B Barrett 186, 2014: B Barrett 209, 2015: B Barrett 121, 2016: B Barrett 223, 2017: Jordie Barrett 133 points, 2018: B Barrett 122, 2019: B Barrett 118, 2020: J Barrett 94, 2021: J Barrett 151, 2022: J Barrett 118, 2023: J Barret 118 and 2024: Brett Cameron 106 points.

Billy Proctor scored the Hurricanes final try (and points) of the season with nine minutes remaining in the match.

It was his 17th try in 61 appearances and third against the Chiefs. The first try of the Hurricanes season had been scored by Josh Moorby back in Week 1 against the Force, nine minutes after the start of the match.

Pasilio Tosi is the only Hurricanes player who appeared in all 16 matches in 2024.

Isaia Walker-Leawere started the most matches for the Hurricanes, 14 from 15 appearances.

Salesi Rayasi was the top try scorer with eight, from 13 appearances.

Brett Cameron played the most minutes for the Hurricanes (1031 in 13 matches) closely followed by Josh Moorby who was on the field for a total of 1029 minutes from his 14 appearances.

Damian McKenzie kicked 15 points during the match to extend his record for most points scored this seasonto 172, including 35 points in the three matches he played against the Hurricanes. He missed just one of his 15 attempts at goal against this side at a success rate of 93.3%.

At the start of the match McKenzie’s total number of points against the Hurricanes was 183, only 10 short of Dan Carter’s record of 193 points for the Crusaders. When he kicked his second penalty just after halftime McKenzie drew level with Carter and went ahead when he converted the Chiefs third try. By the end of the match he had extended his record total against the Hurricanes to 198 points.

A comparison of how both players scored their 193 points is interesting: Dan Carter scored seven tries, 28 conversions and 34 penalties. Damian McKenzie scored three tries, 35 conversions and 36 penalties. Some other serial point scorers against the Hurricanes have been Richie Mo’unga (170 points for the Crusaders), Lima Sopoaga (108 points for the Highlanders) and Andrew Mehrtens (101 points for the Crusaders). Sopoaga is the only one of the five players mentioned whose total points include a drop goal.

At the 35 minute mark, Damian McKenzie kicked a well-received, and rarely seen, 50/22!

In the final six minutes of the match, uncontested (“Golden Oldies”) scrums were set.

Samipeni Finau scored his fourth try for the Chiefs. He also picked up a yellow card. His try after three minutes equalled the “quickest” scored against the Hurricanes this season: by Matt Whaanga of the Highlanders in the final week of regular play. Or, two matches prior to this one.

Cortez Ratima scored his 16th try for the Chiefs and third against the Hurricanes. He had earlier scored in the match played in Week 8 and before that in their first of two encounters last year.

Daniel Rona’s try was his 10th for the Chiefs and second against the Hurricanes. His first was during the same match as Ratima in 2023.

Captain Luke Jacobson was issued with a yellow card.

Liam Coombes-Fabling was a late addition to the Chiefs as a replacement player but did not make it onto the field.

Referee Angus Gardner of Australia controlled his 15th match involving the Hurricanes. It was the third time the Hurricanes opposition has been the Chiefs and in all instances the matches have been played in Wellington.

The first of those three matches was won by the home side as was the second which was the 2016 Semifinal and won 25-9 by the Hurricanes. Of Gardner’s 15 matches in charge, the Hurricanes have won 10 and lost five.

The Hurricanes started their season at an overall winning rate of 56.77% and ended on 57.73%. A win against the Chiefs would have increased the rate to 57.98, just 0.02 of a percent short of reaching 58% for the first time in the franchise’s history.

Overall, the Hurricanes have now played 407 Super Rugby matches. They have won 235 (57.7%), lost 166 and drawn six.

After 29 seasons of Super Rugby the Hurricanes have accumulated 11,336 points made up of 1,410 tries, 986 conversions, 764 penalties and six drop goals. They have conceded 9,756 points made up of 1,115 tries, 783 conversions, 841 penalties and 26 drop goals. A total of 305 players have made at least one appearance in that time.