It shapes as a fascinating contest. Blues coach Vern Cotter used to coach Chiefs coach Clayton McMillan in the Bay of Plenty NPC days.
The man of the match in Wellington, No8 Wallace Sititi faces an interesting battle with Blues No8 Hoskins Sotutu who scored his record-equalling 12th try as a forward in Super Rugby in the Blues 34-20 win over the Brumbies in their semifinal in Auckland on Friday.
Stats Watch
Most tries: Hoskins Sotutu (Blues), Sevu Reece (Crusaders) 12, Emoni Narawa (Chiefs) Tom Wright (Brumbies) 10.
Most carries: Rob Valetini (Brumbies) 176, Mark Tele'a (Blues) 158, Wright 155.
Most clean breaks: Caleb Clarke (Blues) 19, Joshua Moorby (Hurricanes) 18, Tele'a, Etene Nanai-Seturo (Chiefs) 17.
Most defenders beaten: Iosefo Masi (Drua) 80, Selestino Ravutaumada (Drua) 69, Tele'a 58.
Most lineouts won: Liam Wright (Reds) 69, Nick Frost (Brumbies) 60, Darcy Swain (Brumbies) 58.
Most metres gained: Wright 1207, Clarke 1128, Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens (Highlanders) 991.
Most offloads: Reece 22, Sotutu 20, Mark Nawaqanitawase (Waratahs) 19.
Most points: Damian McKenzie (Chiefs) 170, Noah Lolesio (Brumbies) 150, Ben Donaldson (Force) 111.
Most tackles: Carlo Tizzano (Force), Billy Harmon (Highlanders), Ryan Smith (Reds) 208.
Blues 34 Brumbies 20
Firing from the outset, the Blues scored their first try to wing AJ Lam after 101 seconds. It set the tone for the half as the Blues punished too many fundamental mistakes by the Brumbies with two tries, which were direct results of poor control of restarts. Hooker Ricky Riccitelli scored in the seventh minute and lock Sam Darry in the 13th, while wing Caleb Clarke benefited when fullback Stephen Perofeta tidied up some loose backline ball to fling a long pass for Clarke to score. The Brumbies had some reward after 35 minutes when flanker Rob Valetini powered over from a series of goalline rucks as the Blues went to halftime leading 27-13.
The Brumbies showed much more determination in the second half but received no reward during their sterling third quarter. Outstanding Blues defence and an all-powering scrum, which regained control time after time, saw the Blues score first through a record-equalling 12th try for a forward in Super Rugby by Hoskins Sotutu in the 58th minute. The Brumbies did score through replacement Luke Reimer in the 68th minute, but any hopes of a late surge were eliminated when lock Nick Frost was sin-binned at the restart for tackling Clarke in the air, resulting in him crashing to the ground.
Scorers: Blues 34 (AJ Lam, Ricky Riccitelli, Sam Darry, Caleb Clarke, Hoskins Sotutu tries; Harry Plummer 3 con, pen) Brumbies 20 (Rob Valetini, Luke Reimer tries; Noah Lolesio, 2 con, 2 pen). HT: 27-13
Hurricanes 19 Chiefs 30
Hitting the Hurricanes with two tries in the first seven minutes, the Chiefs claimed a lead they never relinquished to upset the competition pacesetters in their semifinal in Wellington. The Chiefs' loose forwards were able to constantly harass the home side, with flanker Samipeni Finau scoring the first try after three minutes and No8 Wallace Sititi playing critical roles in the second try to halfback Cortez Ratima after six minutes, and then the last try scored by wing Daniel Rona in the 62nd minute.
As the Hurricanes were looking to storm back into the game, Sititi burst the momentum they had built when intercepting a pass from first five-eighths Brett Cameron to second five-eighths Jordie Barrett. He wasn't quite able to secure the try after a 45-metre run, but from the ruck, after he was tackled, the ball was flicked on the blindside for Rona to score. The Chiefs' spirit was evident in the way they were able to recover from yellow cards sustained by Finau, and skipper Luke Jacobson, while also losing both hookers Samisoni Taukei'aho and Bradley Slater – both are doubtful for the final – which resulted in the game finishing with golden oldie scrums. The Hurricanes started a fightback in the 21st minute when flanker Peter Lakai scored. They gave themselves a chance after lock Isaiah Walker-Leawere's bullocking run provided space for the supporting Cameron to score midway through the second half. Then, centre Billy Proctor scored with nine minutes left, but the Chiefs secured crucial turnovers at breakdowns to lock the Hurricanes out.
Scorers: Hurricanes 19 (Peter Lakai, Brett Cameron, Billy Proctor tries; Cameron 2 con) Chiefs 30 (Samipeni Finau, Cortez Ratima, Daniel Rona tries; Damian McKenzie 2 con, 3 pen). HT: 7-17