Following a dominant 34-20 victory over the Brumbies in the Super Rugby Pacific in the semi-finals, here is how we rated the Blues players.
Blues player ratings v Brumbies
15 Stephen Perofeta: Counter-attacked well, was not fussed by the Brumbies’ kicking game and offered a good balance as a second first-receiver, popping up with a try assist. 7
14 Mark Tele’a: Constantly troubled the Brumbies, whether he was competing in the air or as a slippery customer with ball in hand. Would like to see the ball more but still a solid performance. 6
13 Rieko Ioane: Dealt with the Brumbies’ attack rather well, shutting down Len Ikitau relatively easily. Ioane made good decisions in attack, too, although he did not get many opportunities as the Blues kept it tight. 6
12 AJ Lam: The Blues bullied the Brumbies on the gain line and clearly won the physical battle, spearheaded by their number 12, who impressed on both sides of the ball. He was rewarded for his efforts with an easy run-in early in the game. 8
11 Caleb Clarke: Another try scorer in the Blues’ comfortable victory. A couple of turnovers but, overall, a strong performance where he regularly got over the advantage line and contested in the air well. 6
Halfbacks
10 Harry Plummer: Ran a tight ship, marshalling the Blues into good field positions and racking up nine points from the tee, as well as a try assist. He kicked well out of hand and was measured in his approach on attack. 8
9 Finlay Christie: Worked well in tandem with Plummer in a solid outing with next to no errors. Controlled the tempo of the attack well before making way after 55 minutes with an eye on the final. 6
Loose forwards
8 Hoskins Sotutu: Flashes of brilliance with ball in hand, as evidenced by him grabbing a try and the number eight’s passing leading to the Blues’ first. A few soft moments, including a torrid kick from a restart. He equalled Malcolm Marx and Folau Fainga’a’s record try tally in a Super Rugby season and will be eyeing a recall to the All Blacks squad, but he still has some work to do with some lethargic actions and soft tackle attempts. 8
7 Dalton Papali’i (c): Part of the physical Blues effort, racking up 18 tackles and a turnover in his 66 minutes. It is a classic leading-from-the-front effort from the openside flanker, who is making a strong case to be a starting All Black. 7
6 Akira Ioane: A big defensive effort in what could be his final appearance at Eden Park ahead of his move to Japan, making 14 tackles before departing the pitch. Solid and was part of the Blues pack that clearly got the upper hand up front. 6
Tight five
5 Josh Beehre: The rising star shone once again with a massive defensive effort, landing 20 tackles on defence, and was excellent at lineout time. 7
4 Sam Darry: Worked well in tandem with Beehre in the lineouts, grabbed a try and was a busybody in the rucks. The Blues did not miss Patrick Tuipulotu today with the performances of the two second rowers. 7
3 Marcel Renata: Dominated the few scrums he was involved in and is another forward who put in a big defensive effort. 7
2 Ricky Riccitelli: Little fuss with finding his jumper at lineout time, strong in the scrums and scored a try. 6
1 Ofa Tu’ungafasi: Less busy on defence than his fellow front-rowers while he was solid in the scrums. Hooked before the hour mark. 6
Replacements: The Blues’ efforts slipped in the latter stages of the match and while they managed to still be solid in defence, the quality was not as dominant as the starters. 4