Chiefs Hang on to Overcome Highlanders in Exciting Clash Rookie And
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74 SPORT SATURDAY MARCH 31 2018 Chiefs hang on to overcome Highlanders in exciting clash Rookie and COMPOSURE in the closing Chiefs dominated large chunks Replacement Fletcher finish out wide. Smith nailed half, punched in another well- Pampling minutes has earned the Chiefs of the match but it took a cou- Smith slotted in efficiently but the extras and the visitors timed cross-kick, Toni Pulu a hard-fought 27-22 Super ple of key lineout takes against it was the Chiefs who con- seized an unlikely lead given leaped high to tap back for full- start well Rugby win over the Highland- the throw in the closing min- trolled possession and led 6-0 their lack of possession and back Solomon Alaimalo to ers in Hamilton yesterday. utes to wrap up the win against after 20 minutes via two Dami- territory. touch down. PGA Tour rookie Sam Ryder In a tight game, with both a stubborn Highlanders outfit. an McKenzie penalties. The lead lasted almost until The conversion gave the played just enough golf to get teams scoring three tries The visitors suffered an The Highlanders made the the break, with the Chiefs’ Chiefs a 13-7 lead at the break, his name atop the leaderboard apiece, the Highlanders push- early blow with the loss of fly- most of their chances three dominance at scrum time a margin they extended just as Australian player Rod Pam- ed right to the final whistle on half Lima Sopoaga after just minutes later, Rob Thomp- wearing down the Highlanders three minutes after the restart pling enjoyed an excellent start Saturday despite lagging be- five minutes due to what son’s perfectly placed cross- before the home team struck in when hooker Nathan Harris to the weather-affected Hous- hind the Chiefs in terms of pos- looked like a lower calf or kick finding Waisake Naholo the 38th minute. McKenzie, muscled his way over from ton Open. session and territory. The achilles tendon injury. on the right wing for a classic running the show from fly- close range. Ryder holed an eight-foot birdie putt on the 15th hole to reach eight-under par before it was too dark to continue. The opening round was de- layed two hours because of overnight rain that dumped more than 50mm on the Golf Canes on Club of Houston. Pampling fired seven bird- ies and a lone bogey for a 66 to finish his round in a tie for fifth, two shots behind Ryder. The 48-year-old’s round in- cluded a 20-foot birdie putt on song as the par 3 16th hole. Fellow Australian Greg Chalmers had five birdies in a bogey-free round of 67. Former US Open champion Lucas Glover and Kevin Tway set the clubhouse target at seven-under. Glover they belt and Tway also had seven bird- ies in opening rounds of 65. The final place in the field for the US Masters is on offer to the winner in Houston, and three-time major winner Pa- draig Harrington is among Rebels those hoping to book a last- minute trip to Georgia. Harrington, who has twice MELISSA WOODS champions in 2016, with Bar- finished fifth in the Masters rett leading them back and but has not played the year’s BEAUDEN Barrett has shown keeping the Rebels scoreless first major since 2015, carded the Melbourne Rebels who’s from that point. five birdies in a bogey-free 67. boss by steering his Hurricanes A flurry of points in the last to a 50-19 win in an action- seven minutes of the first half packed Good Friday Super did the damage. Lam grabbed Rugby clash. his second try of the night as Mixed day The All Blacks five-eighth Debreczeni allowed a Barrett was all class and composure at kick to bounce, thinking it was AAMI Park as the winless run going out but instead landed in for Wie and of Australian teams against the arms of Lam, who raced to their Kiwi opponents stretched touch down. Thompson to 33. Bustling Hurricanes In the final minute of the winger Ben Lam also proved a half Barrett then dummied and AMERICANS Lexi Thomp- handful, grabbing four tries glided untouched through the son and Michelle Wie have among their haul of seven. Rebels defence for his team to had contrasting fortunes play- While Melbourne sat on top take a 25-19 lead into half-time. ing together in the opening of the Super Rugby ladder Melbourne’s hopes of a sec- round of the LPGA Tour event heading into the match, the re- ond-half revival faded as the REBELS in California. sult delivered a reality check visitors showed they still had 19 Thompson made a promis- on their title ambitions. plenty in the tank in the sec- HURRICANES ing start in her bid for redemp- The Rebels started strongly ond half, while their defence tion yesterday after last year’s and raced to a 19-8 lead thanks was rock- solid. 50 four-stroke penalty at Mission to a try by lock Matt Philip and Hard-running Hurricanes HURRICANES Hills in Rancho Mirage. She four penalty strikes by Jack No.8 Gareth Evans spotted a Tries: B Lam 4 B Barrett G Evans N carded a four-under 68 to trail Debreczeni. hole in the defence in the 49th Laumape Swedish leader Pernilla Lind- Conversions: B Barrett 3 Melbourne No.8 Amanaki minute to extend the scoreline Penalty Goals: B Barrett 3 berg by three shots. Mafi played like a man pos- to 14 points. REBELS Wie, on the other hand, sessed, clocking a stunning 15 When a Rebels try went Tries: M Philip try blamed dizzy spells for her runs and 100m in just 40 min- begging as Debreczeni’s last Conversions: J Debreczeni three-over 75 that left her with utes before being replaced at pass went to ground, the task Penalty Goals: J Debreczeni 4 a steep hill to climb. halftime after a head knock. grew too big for the home side, Crowd: 16,135 at AAMI Park “I had the mad spins out But the men from Welling- with tries by Hurricanes centre Referee: A Gardner there,” Wie said. “I just got re- ton showed why they have Ngani Laumape and two more ally dizzy. I don’t know why or been in the Super Rugby finals from Lam fittingly capping the how but it was interesting. for the past three seasons and night. Melbourne’s Amanaki Mafi (left) has a Hurricanes opponent for company at AAMI Park last night “I just sometimes get it from time to time.” Wie, winner of the LPGA Singapore event early this Spaniard survives marathon Stephens topples Azarenka again month, joked that her blurred vision had given her a choice of SPAIN’S Pablo Carreno Busta survived Busta, seeded 16th at Crandon Park, re- US Open champion Sloane Stephens the match early in the second set and five balls to hit from the rough a match point to upset sixth seed Kevin grouped in the decider where the two again ended former world No.1 Victoria never looked back as she raced through at one hole on the front nine. Anderson 6-4 5-7 7-6 (8-6) and reach players stayed on serve until the tie- Azarenka’s hopes of a fairytale come- the decider with ease. “Back nine I felt a lot better. the Miami Open semi-finals. break. Carreno Busta was staring at de- back by beating her 3-6 6-2 6-1 yester- “I just knew I had to keep fighting. In I’m hoping that get a good For Carreno Busta, who arrived on feat when 6-5 down in the tiebreak but day to reach the Miami Open final. the first set I was down but I battled night’s sleep tonight and make court in fine form having dropped only was let off the hook when Anderson Three-times champion Azarenka, back so I knew if I did that in the sec- a lot of birdies,” she said. 12 games over his previous three missed with a forehand. playing as a wildcard in her second ond, I’d be right in there,” the 25-year- Thompson enjoyed a better matches, the win after two hours and 42 Andy Murray is confident he is mak- event after an eight-month absence be- old American said. day, happy to get the opening minutes was his first in five meetings ing good progress in his battle to return cause of a custody dispute involving her “I ended up winning a lot of games in round out of the way after last against Anderson and avenged his to tennis following surgery on his hip. son, showed glimpses of the form that a row and I just tried to keep the mo- year’s bitter pill. Her four- fourth-round Indian Wells loss to the The three-time grand slam champi- took her to the top of the rankings but mentum going.” stroke penalty for replacing world No.8 last week. on has not played competitively since ultimately ran out of gas against her Stephens will face French Open her ball in the wrong spot for a Anderson saved a pair of match exiting Wimbledon at the quarter-final 13th-seeded opponent. champion Jelena Ostapenko in the tap-in putt and signing her points in the second set and shifted mo- stage last July, and he has since lost his Stephens, who also beat Azarenka at final after the Latvian sank American third-round scorecard effec- mentum in his favour but Carreno British No.1 ranking to Kyle Edmund.