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Melbourne’s hopes of a huge win over the high-flying Hurricanes in the Super Rugby Pacific quarter-finals have been boosted by the emergence of star playmaker Carter Gordon and skipper Rob Leota.
Entering their first and last Super Final campaign following news last week that the club will close at the end of the season, the eighth-placed Rebels face a difficult task against a top-ranked Wellington side on Saturday.
No Australian team has ever beaten a New Zealand Super Rugby team in the play-offs in the 28-year history of the competition, with the Rebels humiliated 54-28 by the Hurricanes in their final meeting of round five.
Melbourne’s Gordon is set to return after being sidelined for two weeks with concussion symptoms, while big No.8 Leota cleared HIA protocols after suffering a couple of heavy blows in the 40-19 loss to Fijian Drua in the last round.
“They trained today so they’re all perfectly healthy and hopefully they can get on the plane depending on how we come up after training,” Rebels coach Kevin Foote said.
“Carter has done really well, Robbie has done well, everyone else has done well.”
The Rebels were forced to fly to Fiji just hours after Rugby Australia delivered shocking news about the future of the financially struggling club.
Foote said it had been a difficult time, but the players and coaching staff were determined to at least have clarity and maintain the competition at the highest level.
Coach Kevin Foote. (Photo credit: Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images)
“Controlling what you can control has been our mantra from the beginning and when we leave, we want to leave with our heads held high,” the coach said.
“My job is to control their emotions as best I can. But it’s a special event for us because it’s the quarter-finals and there’s a lot of excitement about it.
“If you look at history, you understand that the Australian team hasn’t done well. But you don’t have to worry because there is only one outcome left to do something special.”
Melbourne trailed the Hurricanes 33-7 at half-time in the Palmerston North meeting and Foote said his side needed a fast start to put the home side on the back foot.
“They were excellent to start the game, they did a really good job and put a lot of pressure on us,” he said.
“They have played some amazing rugby this year so we understand that the start of the game is very important, especially in the final, and controlling their tempo and understanding how we compete will be paramount to us getting the result. It will be.”
© AAP
