The Gallagher Chiefs have named their side to take on the Hurricanes in Wellington this Saturday, following a strong win in front of a sold-out crowd at Bay Oval last weekend.
In the front row, Ollie Norris and Bradley Slater have been named to start with Aidan Ross and Samisoni Taukei’aho who started last week now contributing from the bench.
Josh Jacomb continues at first five-eighth after a strong performance last week, slotting five conversions and two penalties to cement a strong scoreline result.
Daniel Rona has been named at centre in place of Anton Lienert-Brown who suffered a fractured collarbone and will undergo surgery this week. Rona has been a consistently sound performer over the last few seasons and will continue to build a dynamic combination with Quinn Tupaea in the absence of Leinert-Brown.
After an electrifying performance against the Force that earned him Super Rugby Pacific’s Player of the Week, dynamic halfback Cortez Ratima retains his starting spot at Number 9.
Out wide, Leroy Carter returns to the left wing after recovering from a foot injury. Carter has already made a major impact in his debut Super Rugby Pacific season, scoring five tries in his eight appearances this season and showcasing his versatility on the wing.
Gallagher Chiefs head coach Clayton McMillan said the team is looking forward to the challenge of this week’s game in Wellington.
“We were happy with the effort last weekend at Bay Oval. We’ve been building our game, rotating bodies, and relishing the close nature of the competition. The Force are a vastly different side from previous seasons, so we were pleased to come away with the outcome. This week will be a real litmus test. We will learn a lot about ourselves against a high-quality Hurricanes outfit, especially at their house, where they have been pretty formidable in front of their fans and family. It’s a tough place to play but we look forward to the challenge,” said McMillan
Gallagher Chiefs v Hurricanes, 7.05PM, Saturday 3 May 2025, Sky Stadium, Wellington
- Ollie Norris
- Bradley Slater
- George Dyer
- Josh Lord
- Tupou Vaa’i
- Samipeni Finau
- Kaylum Boshier
- Luke Jacobson (c)
- Cortez Ratima
- Josh Jacomb
- Leroy Carter
- Quinn Tupaea
- Daniel Rona
- Emoni Narawa
- Shaun Stevenson
Reserves:
- Samisoni Taukei’aho
- Aidan Ross
- Reuben O’Neill
- Naitoa Ah Kuoi
- Simon Parker
- Wallace Sititi
- Xavier Roe
- Gideon Wrampling
Players unavailable due to injury:
- Damian McKenzie, Hand, Returning Soon
- Etene Nanai-Seturo, Hamstring, Returning Soon
- Kaleb Trask, Ankle, TBC
- Liam Coombes-Fabling, Knee, Mid-term
- Anton Lienert Brown, Collarbone, Mid-term
- Malachi Wrampling, Hamstring, Mid-term
- Fiti Sa, Shoulder, Long-term
- Rameka Poihipi, Knee, Season
