Who’s hot and who’s not: Hurricanes, Leinster and Northampton celebrate while Bulls and Damian McKenzie have ‘horror shows’
Ruben Love was outstanding for Hurricanes while the Bulls struggled in Dublin.
It’s time for our Monday wrap of who has their name in lights and who is making the headlines for all the wrong reasons after the weekend.
THEY’RE ON FIRE!
Hurricanes: A truly stunning performance to wrap up a breathtaking season from the ‘Canes as they brushed aside the Chiefs, winning the final 60-5 on Saturday. Josh Moorby (2), Ruben Love (2), Fehi Fineanganofo, Callum Harkin, Devan Flanders, Jordie Barrett and Jone Rova all crossed the whitewash as they wrapped up a first Super Rugby title since 2016 and deservedly so. The slick Hurricanes topped the regular season standings and then blew away the Brumbies, Blues and Chiefs in the knockout stages, averaging a whopping 61 points per match in those ties. On a personal note, fly-half Love was outstanding in the final while Moorby and Fineanganofo topped the season try count on 17.
Leinster go back-to-back: It was a weekend of finals which kicked off on Friday evening in Dublin where Leinster were also comfortable winners, easing to a 36-7 victory. While the Bulls were hugely disappointing, credit needs to be put at the door of the hosts who were ruthless from the off and subsequently brushed their South African visitors aside for the second final running. Sam Prendergast led the way from fly-half with his best showing for some time as Leinster, after a season that has been up and down in terms of emotions and form, ended on a high note. Leo Cullen has since announced that he will be departing in June 2027, and who would bet against a URC three-peat to sign off?
Northampton Saints: Another title richly deserved as the PREM Rugby table toppers edged a much-improved Exeter Chiefs side 26-17 in the final at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham. The Saints started hot with Tommy Freeman crossing in the first minute and further scores from Fin Smith and George Hendy (2) helped see them to victory over the Chiefs. Exeter boss Rob Baxter was quick to compliment Northampton on their success and we’d also add it’s the manner in which they play that has earned them ample plaudits and respect this season. Rugby’s marmite, Henry Pollock, was named Player of the Match to cap a fine campaign from the back-row who now switches his focus to England.
Uncapped and returning Springboks: Rassie Erasmus selected six uncapped players in his squad for the upcoming internationals and the sextet includes U20s stars Riley Norton and Vusi Moyo, while Paul de Villiers, Ruben van Heerden, Carlu Sadie and Jaco Williams are also in line for their international debuts after making the wider group. Erasmus praised the “next generation” after naming his squad and believes they proved they are ready after impressing for South Africa ‘A’ against the Barbarians over the weekend. There is also a return for Rugby World Cup winner Herchel Jantjies, while Embrose Papier could also win his first Test cap since 2018 after making the final squad.
Top 14 finalists: It will be Toulouse v Montpellier in France’s showpiece club finale this Saturday after two contrasting semi-finals over the weekend. On Friday, Toulouse put on an attacking clinic as they blew away Racing 92 in a breathtaking 71-17 victory that saw them score 10 tries on the night. 24 hours later, Montpellier booked their ticket to the final with a hard-fought 25-15 success against Stade Francais, with Domingo Miotti’s steady boot and try assist proving decisive. That throws up an intriguing game at the Stade de France between the regular season’s top one and two sides, a fixture that Toulouse, led by an in-form Antoine Dupont, head into as favourites for a 25th French title.
Ardie Savea honour: What a proud moment it must have been for Savea to be officially named Dave Rennie’s captain for the upcoming international block of fixtures. Savea will skipper the 34-player squad that includes four uncapped players and no one would argue it isn’t deserved. “Ardie is highly respected by his teammates and cares deeply about the black jersey,” Rennie said about the appointment. Savea will now be determined to lead an All Black resurgence, starting with that first-up game against France in Christchurch on Saturday, July 4.
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COLD AS ICE!
Disappointing Bulls: Just not at the races at Croke Park on Friday, simple as that. One wonders whether this finale being one week after the semi instead of two, meaning they would have taken the short flight from Scotland to Ireland, would have helped their cause instead of coming and going from South Africa? But these are what-ifs and it’s tough to come up with a solid defence for the Bulls’ performance against Leinster. They were blown away as several Springboks failed to turn up for this final. While many have pointed the finger at Handre Pollard, it was a collective no-show from Johan Ackermann’s men as the predicted dominance up front didn’t happen, while in attack they were dire.
Chiefs come up well short: At least they weren’t as bad as the Chiefs. That was a nightmare day at the office that the men from Hamilton would have wanted to end no sooner had it got going. The Chiefs were 29-0 down at the break in Wellington, and things got even worse in the second period as they leaked a further five tries to end up on the end of that emphatic 60-5 defeat. It was like chalk and cheese from the side that put away the Crusaders so ruthlessly in the semi-final only a week ago. The post-mortem of this Super Rugby final will be a difficult one.
Andy Farrell forced to make changes as key Ireland duo out of Nations Championship
Ireland injury setback: Ireland were dealt a double blow over the weekend when captain Caelan Doris and winger Tommy O’Brien were ruled out of the Nations Championship Southern Series following Leinster’s United Rugby Championship victory on Friday. The skipper was removed from the field with a foot injury barely six minutes into the game against the Bulls, and it has since been confirmed that the injury is more severe than initially hoped. Meanwhile, O’Brien sustained damage to his ankle during the fixture in Dublin when he landed awkwardly after competing for a kick, with Ulster’s Bryn and Zac Ward replacing the duo in Andy Farrell’s squad. Cruel luck for both Doris and O’Brien.
England XV loss: England’s dreadful start to 2026 continued in Brittany as they fell to a 35-19 defeat to France XV. This loss comes after a Six Nations campaign that saw them lose four out of five games and will no doubt keep the pressure on head coach Steve Borthwick, despite being backed by the powers that be in a recent review. There were errors galore from England as any hope this fixture would turn a page on recent woes ahead of the summer have done nothing of the sort. Borthwick will hope an injection of Saints will help to turn things around.
Damian McKenzie shocker: As horror shows go, this was right up there. McKenzie had a nightmare from minute one in the Super Rugby Pacific final as he struggled against both the strong wind and Hurricanes line speed. The errors just kept coming all night in Wellington, and compounding his mistakes was the sight of All Blacks fly-half rival Love turning everything he touched to gold. On top of his problems with the boot, McKenzie conceded eight turnovers and missed nine tackles as the Chiefs star had an awful evening which will no doubt cut deep.
Sad Oli Jager news: The Munster prop has been forced to retire with immediate effect. In an announcement shared on the club website, Jager said: “It is with a very heavy heart that I share that I have been advised to medically retire from rugby.” The 30-year-old was a popular figure at the Crusaders and Munster during his career and Clayton McMillan insists he can “take great pride in everything he has achieved”.