By Greg Stutchbury
WELLINGTON May 26 (Reuters) – Scrumhalf TJ Perenara
emphatically stamped his future All Blacks credentials into the
national consciousness on Saturday as the Wellington Hurricanes
demolished the Melbourne Rebels 66-24 in their Super Rugby
match.
The 20-year-old was widely considered unlucky not to have
made Steve Hansen’s extended All Blacks training squad, which
re-assembles on Sunday in New Zealand’s capital before being
thinned down for three tests against Ireland next month.
At the Wellington Regional Stadium on Saturday, the lively
Perenara appeared to have a point to prove as he sniped around
the fringes, set his backline away with crisp passing and
bamboozled the Rebels defence with intelligent kicking as the
Hurricanes ran in nine tries.
The bonus-point victory kept alive the Hurricanes slim hopes
of making the top-six playoffs as they moved to 40 points and
into seventh place in the standings.
The Rebels, who had won their two previous games, did not
help themselves with terrible ball retention at the breakdown
and an inability to adapt their defensive pattern as the home
side mixed up their attack.
Such was the Hurricane’s attacking potency, seven of the
tries were scored by the back three, with winger Julian Savea
grabbing a hat-trick, while fullback Andre Taylor and Alapati
Leiua scored two each.
Loose forward Jack Lam and replacement scrumhalf Chris Eaton
grabbed the other tries for the Hurricanes.
Flyhalf Beauden Barrett was flawless converting all nine
tries and slotting an early penalty for 21 points, which gave
him 158 for the season, surpassing the record 152 that John
Preston scored in 1997 for the Wellington side.
Continued…
