Brumbies player ratings: ‘World-class’ finishes sends Wallabies message after Joe Schmidt snub but Tom Wright’s ‘odd game’ sums up semi-final loss
Corey Toole and Tom Wright in action for the Brumbies in Super Rugby Pacific in 2025.
Following a 37-17 defeat to the Chiefs in the Super Rugby Pacific clash in Hamilton on Saturday, here are the player ratings for the Brumbies.
15 Tom Wright: An odd game for the full-back, who kicked everything back in the first half before having to be more adventurous when the match started to get away from the visitors. As a result, there were some mistakes but also several excellent moments, including a brilliant take from the restart. He should have touched down but Damian McKenzie’s outrageous tackle, combined with Wright holding the ball in the wrong arm, meant he didn’t score. It rather summed up his mixed day. 6
14 Andy Muirhead: A couple of decent moments in attack but he was bested in the air and struggled to really impose himself on the contest. 5
13 Len Ikitau: Never stopped working and was physical throughout. There were some big carries with ball in hand while Ikitau was strong defensively, especially in the first half, as the Chiefs struggled to make any headway. 7
12 David Feliuai: One fine break aside, it was a quiet evening for the centre, who threw his weight around but didn’t make the impact he would have liked. 6
‘World-class finishes’
11 Corey Toole: A couple of world-class finishes from the speedy Toole, who did all he could to keep the Brumbies in the game. The second was particularly excellent as he showed his gas to break the first line of defence, his power to swat McKenzie away and his try-scoring prowess to finish superbly in the corner. Having been overlooked by Joe Schmidt last year, the wing is doing all he can to convince the Wallabies boss he is ready for a Test cap. 8
10 Noah Lolesio: Started the game reasonably well with his kicking game keeping the Brumbies on the front foot but then went for a HIA and never returned. N/A
9 Ryan Lonergan: Began well enough with his box-kicking pretty accurate and his control stopping the Chiefs from attacking from good areas, but they would eventually lose the territorial battle, while he missed a few efforts off the tee. 5
8 Tuaina Taii Tualima: A key player at the lineout but otherwise a liability. Hands like cement and some other reckless moments, including an attempted ‘tackle’ which could have taken Shaun Stevenson’s head off if Tualima had connected. 4
7 Rory Scott: A menace at the breakdown but he was eventually bested in that area as the Chiefs won the battle. Scott still ends in credit but he was given a clinic by Luke Jacobson. 6
Big display never came
6 Rob Valetini: The Brumbies needed some of those bruising carries and, although there were a few decent surges, they were few and far between. Couldn’t fault his work ethic but the Aussies needed a big display from Valetini and it didn’t quite transpire. 6
5 Tom Hooper: Started well enough but his influence waned as the match wore on. Hooper was there for his physicality but the Chiefs eventually got on top in the close quarters. 5
4 Nick Frost: It was all very promising from the rangy second-row initially as the lineout ran smoothly and he was a presence in the loose, but it was almost as though he got spooked by Naitoa Ah Kuoi’s excellence in the second period and the lineout became a shambles. 6
3 Allan Alaalatoa (c): A decent shift from the tighthead, who held up his side of the scrum and was a ubiquitous presence at close quarters. 6
2 Billy Pollard: Probably the Brumbies’ best forward. Pollard was excellent during his 54 minutes on the field with the lineout working well, while he also provided some good moments with ball in hand. As soon as he went off, the Australians’ set-piece crumbled. 7
1 James Slipper: Despite being 36, Slipper remains one of the best scrummagers in Australia and he showed that here as he gave them a decent platform to work from. 6
Replacements: Jack Debreczeni came on early and endured a mixed display, with some excellent moments being interspersed by the odd shambolic error as the Brumbies lost the control that Lolesio would have provided them. The positive was Luke Reimer, who won a couple of breakdown turnovers and put himself about, but the rest were poor. Particularly the replacement front-row, whose only gear was reverse. 3
