ODT Online rugby writer Jeff Cheshire rates the Highlanders after their win over the Chiefs at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin last night.
Richard Buckman 7.5/10: Keeps getting better and better, strong on defence and dangerous with ball in hand, showing good pace and stepping out of tackles well.
Malakai Fekitoa 8/10: Carried on his strong form and was devastating carrying the ball, although did lose a couple in contact. Was strong defensively too, making tackles and running good lines to prevent the offload to the outside.
Shaun Treeby 7.5/10: Had probably his best game of the season, looking threatening with ball in hand, making a couple of good breaks including the one which created the momentum for the first try.
Patrick Osborne 6/10: Got better after a rusty start, made some nice runs up the wing in the second half and showed he does not need much space to be a threat.
Lima Sopoaga 6.5/10: Pretty solid, mainly distributed but did so well, using Treeby and Fekitoa effectively. Only ran once but did so well. His field kicking was average, but was once again outstanding kicking for goal.
Aaron Smith 6.5/10: Passed well, with speed and length which freed up the back line to play with more width. Coped well under a lot of pressure around the fringes, although some of his kicking was not overly flash.
Nasi Manu 7/10: Probably not as physically imposing as he can be, but made plenty of tackles and seemed to pop up, adapting to a more open game plan well.
Shane Christie 8/10: 21 tackles, say no more.
Elliot Dixon 6/10: Did a lot of dirty work and so often is the second support player that goes unnoticed. Tackled well and was aggressive at the breakdown.
Joe Wheeler 7/10: Another hard worker, made ten tackles and was part of a well-functioning scrum.
Tom Franklin 7.5/10: Was strong in contact and got through a mountain of work, being quick around the field and handling the Chiefs short kickoff well.
Ma'afu Fia 7/10: Very good in the scrum and was fairly active around the field.
Brayden Mitchell 6.5/10: Another who worked hard and got a huge turnover which led to the chance to counter for the second try.
Kane Hames 8.5/10: Absolutely destroyed Ben Tameifuna at scrum time, which was huge in the overall context of the game. Was busy around the field as well, surely must be getting looked at closely by the All Black selectors.
Ged Robinson 6.5/10: Carried on the work of Mitchell well, the scrum did not weaken and his throwing was good.
Chris King 7.5/10: Added energy off the bench, getting through a mountain of work on defence and ensured the scrum continued its dominance after replacing Fia at the 45 minute mark.
Josh Bekhuis 6/10: Pretty solid, coming on to finish the game off and was involved in a crucial breakdown towards the end.
Lee Allan 6.5/10: Did not shy away from anything, looking for work on defence and cleaned up some loose ball.
Fumiaki Tanaka 5.5/10: Generally speaking was okay, but was too slow clearing the ball at times which put everyone under unnecessary pressure.
Hayden Parker (No Rating): Made a crucial kick towards the end not long after coming on.
Phil Burleigh (No Rating): Had an unfortunate high tackle when the Chiefs were under the pump, but otherwise was pretty tidy in what could yet be his final game at Forsyth Barr Stadium.
