Hurricanes blow away Sunwolves as Sharks sink Reds

WELLINGTON: Kobus van Wyk bagged a hat-trick in a sensational debut for the Wellington Hurricanes who thrashed the hapless Sunwolves 62-15 Saturday, while his old team the Coastal Sharks kept their strong start to the season going.

The bonus-point win in Napier lifted the Hurricanes to second equal with the Waikato Chiefs in the New Zealand conference, a point behind the Canterbury Crusaders with both the Chiefs and Crusaders on a bye week. It was the second game in a row that the Japanese side leaked 10 tries after their thrashing by the Queensland Reds last weekend.

“We’ve got some pretty freakish athletes out there,” Hurricanes captain TJ Perenara said. “You see Ngani, Vince, (Ben) Lam, Vaea. When those boys get going it’s quite hard to stop. “The more we can get those boys in space and open it up for the rest of us the better it is.”

In Brisbane, the Durban-based Sharks proved too dangerous for the Reds, winning 33-23 for their third victory from four on their overseas tour.

Van Wyk joined the Hurricanes from the Sharks at the start of the season but had been sidelined by injury until this week. When he did take the field, he scored twice in the first half and again in the second.

The Sunwolves started strongly and wrong-footed the Hurricanes to have Australian-born lock Michael Stolberg score in the fourth minute. But it didn’t take the Hurricanes long to strike back and by half-time they were up 28-10 before adding a further 32 points in the second stanza. It was another disappointment for the Sunwolves, who opened the season with an unexpected win over the Melbourne Rebels, but have seen their farewell year in Super Rugby go downhill since.

The loss added to a week of bad luck, with the side told Friday their matches against the ACT Brumbies in Osaka next week and against the Crusaders in Tokyo a week later have been moved to Australia due to fears over the deadly coronavirus.

Despite the setbacks, they rattled the Hurricanes early on in a short-lived show of promise before wing van Wyk touched down for his opening try.

After a Jumpei Ogura penalty regained the lead for the Sunwolves, the Hurricanes stepped up a gear, producing back-to-back tries to fullback Chase Tiatia with van Wyk chiming in with his second for the team to turn with a healthy 28-10 lead.

Ben Lam, TJ Perenara, Gareth Evans, Van Dyke, Laumape and Vince Aso all scored for the Hurricanes in the second half while Siosaia Fifita touched down for the Sunwolves’ second try.

In Brisbane, the Sharks dominated the breakdown for a battling four tries to three win. “It was a great win, a great effort from the boys. Credit to the forwards. They put us on the front foot,” said captain Lukhanyo Am.

“We’re really happy with the results, the Sharks are a team that travels well.”

Both sides booted penalties within the opening six minutes in a bruising encounter before hooker Kerron van Vuuren pounced with the first try of the game for the Sharks. It stemmed from a lineout with the forwards dropping into a maul and driving over from the 22-metre line.