” SAD END “: Tears filled their eyes as the Melbourne Rebels said a heartfelt goodbye to Super Rugby.
Tears filled their eyes as the Melbourne Rebels said a heartfelt goodbye to Super Rugby.
Melbourne’s Super Rugby Pacific career came to an end after a quarterfinal loss to the Hurricanes, as the Rebels players’ tears signaled the end. The Hurricanes were leading the standings going into the Rebels’ match on Saturday in Wellington, but some tenacious defense kept them to an eight-point lead at the break. That had an impact, as the home team scored five tries in the second half to win 47–20. Lachie Anderson, a winger for the Rebels, scored a late double, but the Hurricanes were still on course to advance to the semifinals.
Two weeks ago, Rugby Australia informed the financially struggling club that they were being fired. As a result of this courageous defeat, the Rebels were forced to exit the tournament in their first-ever final after 14 years of participation.
youthful lock Victorian-born Josh Canham and playmaker Carter Gordon were among the Melbourne players in tears, while the supporters who had traveled to Wellington also appeared heartbroken from the stands. After five years with the team, former captain Brad Wilkin found it difficult to contain his tears during a post-match interview. Wilkin shook his head and said, “It’s a sad time, just the realisation that the club’s over,” to Stan Sport. “I can’t be more proud of the group sticking together this season; a lot of guys and people have put a lot of effort and money into this club.”
Early on, Melbourne gave the Hurricanes everything they had and unnerved the home team with their rushing defense. They held the home team up over the line twice, becoming the first team this season to prevent the Hurricanes from scoring a try in the first 20 minutes. However, four minutes later, prop Pasilio Tosi barreled over, blowing the Rebels’ 3-0 advantage. The Hurricanes led 14-6 at the half when center Joshua Moorby found a hole to score in the 39th minute. Another Rebels penalty cut the lead to 7-6, but Gordon twice missed the mark while clearing kicks.
In the second half, Jordie Barrett, an All Black, escaped a Rob Leota tackle to find No. 8 Brayden Iose, giving Wellington the lead. following 57 minutes, the Rebels had a mountain to climb following two more attempts in three minutes, with the lead down to 35–6. After a strong run by backup back-rower Vaiolini Ekuasi, Anderson finally opened Melbourne’s try-scoring account in the 65th minute and scored again two minutes later. Reserves Du’Plessis Kirifi and Kini Naholo scored two late tries for the Hurricanes, blowing up the score and solidifying their status as the clear favorites.
Rebels captain Leota, who joined the team in 2016, expressed his pride in the manner his group came together despite Melbourne’s axe being hovering over them since January. The No. 8, who was raised in Melbourne, stated, “We set out to be the best Rebels team ever and to make the finals.” “We’re not happy with our loss, but it’s difficult to bounce back when you give a strong opponent like the Hurricanes opportunity. “We’re very happy with that first half, but the Canes proved they could play for the full 80 minutes.”
