Super Rugby Pacific finally has the jeopardy it so badly needed

This is the Super Rugby Pacific season the competition needed

After the dramas of last year, when Melbourne Rebels were plunged into uncertainty and then eventually expelled from the Super Rugby altogether, tournament organisers needed a thrilling and competitive start to 2025. And that's exactly what they have received; crucially, there is now genuine jeopardy in Super Rugby Pacific. On the weekend, three of the five games resulted in upsets - at least with the bookmakers anyway - after the Brumbies, Fijian Drua and Moana Pasifika defeated the Blues, Chiefs and Hurricanes respectively. Better yet, the upsets all came in contrasting fashion. The Brumbies had to grind their way past the Blues, coming from behind to lead for only 30-odd seconds of the match, while the Drua, too, trailed at the break, but surged to the front in the second half, winger Ponipate Loganimasi scoring what may well prove to be the try of the season along the way. Pasifika then completed the hat trick of extraordinary results, overcoming the loss of skipper Ardie Savea at halftime despite a couple of late wobbles. This is the fourth iteration SRP and it already looks like being the best yet, with only the Waratahs - who were gifted a golden draw to start the season - unbeaten through four rounds.

Is it time for New Zealand Rugby to panic?

The short answer to that question is 'no', though the mere fact that statisticians went digging into the archives to research whether there had been a "clean sweep of the Kiwis" previously in Super Rugby won't have had NZR administrators jumping for joy either. There had in fact been only one weekend in the history of Super Rugby that no New Zealand team had registered a win, coming way back in Round 12, 2000, per Rugby Database and Stats Info. Certainly, there is cause for some concern for both the Blues and Hurricanes, though the Crusaders look to be getting back to somewhere near their best after they ensured that stat would not be repeated by blitzing the Reds on Sunday. What is perhaps most worrying for NZR officials and All Blacks coach Scott Robertson alike, is that the unrivalled depth the country has enjoyed throughout the game's history is not what it once was. Jordie Barrett's exit, on top of Ardie Savea's departure, has left the Hurricanes with two mighty holes to fill, while the Blues were rudderless after Beauden Barrett's departure on Friday - he looks set to miss a chunk of the competition with a fractured hand - and were way off the mark at the tackle area. Similarly, the Chiefs were not the same outfit with Damian McKenzie having the week off, though the ladder leaders' loss to the Drua was less alarming given how the Fijians usually perform at home. But there was a time in New Zealand when the loss of proven stars would be covered by the collective skill sets and rugby IP of their teammates - those days might just be over.

Max Jorgensen proving RA backed the right horse

The Waratahs produced their best performance in 2025 to hammer the Force 34-10 and remain undefeated. While it was by no means the perfect outing, NSW's attack was vastly improved on their previous two victories; the Sydneysiders seemingly having a little more flow under new fly-half Lawson Creighton. But the star of the show was undoubtedly Max Jorgensen, the 20-year-old winger scoring a double and having a hand in another five-pointer as the Waratahs picked up the bonus-point victory. Jorgensen's acceleration first allowed him to burn Ben Donaldson on a sprint to the corner for the game's opener, before he later picked off a vital intercept to sprint away, again just when it looked like the Force might be about to break open on the counter. Signed through 2026, Jorgensen is already living up to the hype that made him hot property for both rugby and rugby league when he was off contract last year. He scored the try that secured the Wallabies a drought-breaking win at Twickenham on the spring tour, and added another in Dublin a couple of weeks later. And Jorgensen is a genuine x-factor player, a winger who can make something out of nothing, which could be vital in what is expected to be a tight series with the British & Irish Lions later this year. But the quality of his play is likely to prove a double-edged sword for Rugby Australia, as the value of his performances climb so will his asking price next year. Signing a two-year deal, as opposed to a three-year contract, looks like shrewd business from Jorgensen's management team.

Live by the scrum, die by the scrum

You're missing out if you're not following the Blues on social media. The defending champions seldom fail to strike the right tone across their platforms, offering up an honest and often comedic assessment of the team's performance. On Friday night that meant there was no hiding from the set-piece that cost them the match against the Brumbies, as the visitors produced a mighty shove in the 79th minute to earn a penalty from James Doleman, one that Ryan Lonergan duly kicked from right out in front. The Blues had earlier used the set-piece to good effect themselves, earning a first-half penalty as they marched all over the Brumbies' all-Wallabies front-row. But such is the importance of the set-piece, that your replacement front-rowers must also be up to the task. And so when Feao Fotuaika and Blake Schoupp entered the contest, the set-piece showdown changed, the Brumbies earning the opportunity to steal the four points. What Friday night's game also showed is that the laughable complaints that emanated out of the northern hemisphere, and South Africa, about the scrum contest being devalued through the law trial that means scrums can no longer be taken from free kicks, are completely unjustified. There are still more than enough scrums in a game to make any set-piece advantage count.

Reds learn a brutal lesson in Christchurch

One of the features of the Les Kiss-Queensland Reds era has been the team's style of play, an expansive, offload-heavy approach that has brought fans out of their seats in Brisbane. On a perfect early-autumn afternoon in Christchurch, the Reds had all the ingredients they needed to execute that game plan - but instead were blown off the paddock in the first half by the Crusaders. Simply, the Reds dropped too much ball and pushed passes they did not need to, allowing their hosts to produce some brilliant counter attack with the wind at their backs, and give Will Jordan the half opportunities he needs to create mayhem for opposition defences. Queensland only needed to rein in the 50/50 passes slightly, to be a little more patient, and they would have turned around at halftime with a smaller margin than the 15-point gap that greeted them at the break. When they failed to safely clear their own 22 from the second-half restart they immediately invited the Crusaders onto the attack, and any hope of a Reds revival was obliterated when Christian Lio-Willie scored a few moments later.