Whilst those in the Northern Hemisphere have their sights firmly set on the Six Nations and (for those countries involved in it) the Rugby Europe Championships at this moment in time, fans in the Southern Hemisphere have other things to focus on, with this weekend seeing the 2024 Super Rugby Pacific campaign get underway, beginning on Friday night when defending champions the Crusaders travel to the Chiefs, who they edged to the title in Hamilton last year.
As with every campaign, it promises to be a spectacle to behold with plenty of players to admire and to enjoy watching week after week, and this brief tactical analysis will preview the action by picking out five of them, highlighting in each case why they are worth looking out for during the coming months.
Rob Valetini
Australian rugby has undoubtedly fallen a long way off where it used to be and the Wallabies’ performances both before and during the Rugby World Cup last year demonstrated that point, with plenty of analysis indicating where they are currently struggling to match their opponents.
However, that does not mean that they are failing to produce some outstanding rugby talent, and one of those who has always been a player to keep an eye on is Brumbies back rower Rob Valetini. Since joining the Canberra side in 2018, he has garnered a reputation as an explosive ball-carrier and a ferocious tackler and his teammates will need him to bring the best of both sides of his game to the field this season if they are to improve on last year’s play-off semi-final exit.
With Valetini largely featuring at number 8 for the team, it can be expected that one thing that he will look to do is to pick the ball up from the back of scrums and to catch opposing defences out where he can, and that could be something to look out for when the Brumbies get their season underway at the Melbourne Rebels.
Damian McKenzie
There is very little to say about Damian McKenzie that hasn’t already been said in one place or another, with his versatility much discussed and the fact that he can play at fly-half or at full-back and has the same effect in both positions making him an intrinsic player in the Chiefs’ DNA and helping him to finish last season as the tournament’s top point-scorer.
It was this that helped him to be a key part of New Zealand’s tactics at the World Cup too, with him often coming off the bench and using his ability to find teammates in space to ensure that the All Blacks could stay on the front foot as their opponents started to tire.
However, it would be a surprise to see him start any Super Rugby match as a substitute this season, with it more likely that he will be the driving force behind their attempt to go one better this time around through his knack of getting the ball into the right areas at the right times and allowing the right people to target areas of weakness in opposing lines.
Leigh Halfpenny
It is easy to forget sometimes that, whilst the majority of players who compete in Super Rugby hail from Australia, New Zealand or the Pacific Island nations, there are a number who have moved to experience the competition from other areas of the world too. This season is no different in that regard, and one player who will be tasting it for the first time (having hung up his international boots at the end of the World Cup) is former Wales full-back Leigh Halfpenny.
Whilst he is now 35 and so is coming to the end of his career, he does still have a lot to offer in terms of his expert kicking both in open play and from the tee and in his defensive work, and the fact that he spent a number of years as a key component in a very successful Welsh team shows that he has the ability to play at the highest level and to not falter under pressure.
The team who secured his services for the 2024 campaign, following his departure from Scarlets last year, are the Crusaders, and they are a team who could really benefit from having him in the backfield as they enter the post-Scott Robertson era. Not only will it allow them to utilise one of their other full-back options on the wing, with star wide attacker Will Jordan out of action, but his experience will also come in handy as they try to be as expansive as possible in possession and as compact as they can without it.
Jordie Barrett
Like the aforementioned McKenzie, Jordie Barrett is someone that any team would love to have in their squad, with him capable of playing in any position among the backs and constantly working hard for his side.
There will be many who argue that he was unfortunate to miss out on a nomination for the 2023 World Rugby Player of the Year award (which was eventually won by his Hurricanes and New Zealand teammate Ardie Savea), and yet that highlights how so much of what he does happens in the background and is not often noticed, with him thriving at things like securing possession on the ground, taking up good positions from which he can keep the ball moving and pressing opponents early as soon as his team lose possession.
He might be overshadowed at times by his older brother Beauden, who is arguably the best-known of the Barrett brothers, but there is no doubting his importance to everything that the Hurricanes (and the All Blacks, for that matter) do well, and the Wellington-based side will hope that he can exert his influence again this season as they try to get further than the play-off quarter-finals, starting with a trip to Australian side Western Force.
Fraser McReight
It was mentioned earlier that Australia have not been playing well but do still have outstanding talent in their ranks, and Queensland Reds flanker Fraser McReight is undoubtedly one of those who fits right into that category. Born in the state that his domestic side represents, he has been a mainstay of their squad for a number of years now and yet continually goes under the radar despite offering so much around the field.
The key thing to notice about his play is his constant desire to get on the ball in any area of the pitch possible, with him often arriving at breakdown situations in time to either get over the ball and to prevent a jackal or to be the first receiver when it has been recycled. His defensive work too needs to be mentioned, with him working hard whenever his side are without the ball, and these combined characteristics have translated into his performances on the international stage too.
All in all, he is not someone that the eye might immediately be drawn to, but there is no doubting his importance to the Reds’ game plan, and they will hope that he is in top form as they try to improve on the play-off quarter-final stage that they reached last season (at which point they were defeated by Chiefs), beginning with this weekend’s visit of Waratahs.