The Hurricanes thrashed the shocking Sunwolves 62-15, running in 10 tries after a dominant display at a sunny McLean Park, Napier.
Kobus Van Wyk scored a hat-trick, and Chase Tiatia grabbed a first-half brace before second-half scores from TJ Perenara, Ben Lam, Gareth Evans, Ngani Laumape and Vince Aso completed the rout.
Tiatia had a superb game, sharing two assists with Aso while also kicking a conversion.
Fletcher Smith nailed five kicks before going off the boil, or the final score would have been larger.
As good as the Hurricanes played, the Sunwolves were abject, putting on another embarrassing display on their long tour of Australasia.
Despite the visitors’ fast start, one sensed this game was over as soon as the New Zealanders took the lead.
Tiatia’s first score, on 19 minutes, moved the hosts 12-10 in front, and then the floodgates opened.
The Kiwis never looked back, passing the half-century before the hour mark after four tries in the third quarter after the interval.
Laumape finally dotted down for a deserved five-pointer before Siosaia Fifita crossed for his side’s second on 62 minutes.
Laumape had a second, but the score was chalked off for a forward pass.
It wasn’t long, however, before Aso’s brilliance was rewarded when the centre dotted down for a score with less than three minutes to play.
The bonus-point win keeps the Hurricanes in contention in the New Zealand Conference as Jason Holland’s side move ahead of the Blues.
The same cannot be said for the sorry Sunwolves; they stay rooted to the bottom of the Australian Conference with only one win, this season.
Sunwolves’ fast start is an aberration as ‘Canes carve up the visitors with clinical finishing
Van Wyk and Tiatia both collected dotted down twice inside the opening half-hour as the Hurricanes raced into a 28-10 lead.
The former Stormers and Sharks winger will not have an easier ride than this, barely breaking a sweat for a treble that would be harder to score at a captain’s run.
Tiatia also had an easy ride to the try-line, while being accurate with his passing as he set-up tries for Van Wyk and Lam.
The Sunwolves took a surprise 7-10 lead after Michael Stolberg opened the scoring in the fourth minute, and flyhalf Jumpei Ogura’s boot put the visitors in front.
The joy was short-lived, though, as the Japanese franchise imploded spectacularly.
Aso and his midfield partner Laumape carved up the tourists with their hard, direct running as the Sunwolves dropped off first-time tackles at an alarming rate.
Aso assisted both Van Wyk and Tiatia’s first tries as he opened up the opposition.
Perenara thought he had scored before halftime, but his try was chalked off for a forward pass in the build-up by Laumape to Aso.
The Sunwolves were reeling, sensing another 60-point thrashing in the making after the debacle in Brisbane against the Reds, last weekend.
Hurricanes score three times inside three times in six minutes of madness after the break
Whatever Head Coach Naoya Okubo said to his beleaguered side inside the changerooms, it did not work.
It had the opposite effect as his side shipped three easy tries after the restart.
Super Rugby Video Highlights: Hurricanes versus Sunwolves, McLean Park, Napier
Lam, Perenara and Evans all crossed in quick succession as the hosts ran away with the game.
The Japanese tackling was conspicuous by its absence as the home team ran from their 22, time and again.
Laumape scored after another turnover, and breakaway, from inside the Hurricanes’ half, touching down under the sticks.
The tourists did manage to notch another score.
Winger Fifita ran over two defenders before carrying another over the chalk from a scrum, with 14 minutes to play.
But Aso capped a sublime individual performance with a 77th-minute try.
The centre kicked ahead, chased, regathered and dotted down after a mistake from the defender to complete the bonus-point rout.
Final Score: Hurricanes 62 (28) Sunwolves 15 (10)
Scorers
Hurricanes
Tries – Van Wyk (3), Tiatia (2), Lam, Perenara, Evans, Laumape, Aso
Pen –
Con – Smith (5), Tiatia
Drop –
Cards –
Sunwolves
Tries – Stolberg, Fifita
Pen – Ogura
Con – Ogura
Drop –
Cards –
Match Officials
Referee: Federico Anselmi
Assistant Ref 1: Mike Fraser
Assistant Ref 2: Dan Waenga
TMO: Aaron Paterson
Teams
Head Coach: Jason Holland
15 Chase Tiatia, 14 Kobus Van Wyk, 13 Vince Aso, 12 Ngani Laumape, 11 Ben Lam, 10 Fletcher Smith, 9 TJ Perenara (captain), 8 Gareth Evans, 7 Du’Plessis Kirifi, 6 Vaea Fifita, 5 Scott Scrafton, 4 James Blackwell, 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Asafo Aumua, 1 Xavier Numia.
Replacements: 16 Ricky Riccitelli, 17 Ben May, 18 Alex Fidow, 19 Isaia Walker-Leawere, 20 Devan Flanders, 21 Jonathan Taumateine, 22 James Marshall, 23 Peter Umaga-Jensen.
Head Coach: Naoya Okubo
15 Alex Horan, 14 Siosaia Fifita, 13 Keisuke Moriya (co-captain), 12 Shogo Nakano, 11 James Dargaville, 10 Jumpei Ogura, 9 Rudy Paige, 8 Jake Schatz (co-captain), 7 Mitch Jacobson, 6 Tevita Tupou, 5 Michael Stolberg, 4 Kotaro Yatabe, 3 Hencus van Wyk, 2 Jaba Bregvadze, 1 Jarred Adams.
Replacements: 16 Efitusi Maafu, 17 Nic Mayhew, 18 Conraad van Vuuren, 19 Justin Downey, 20 Shunsuke Nunomaki, 21 Naoto Saito, 22 JJ Engelbrecht, 23 Tautalatasi Tasi.
