Multiple Authors
Welcome to our weekly Super Rugby Pacific review, where we’ll touch on some of the key talking points from the weekend’s action.
Round 1 of the 2026 season threw up a few upsets, with the Highlanders, Waratahs, Chiefs, Moana Pasifika and Brumbies picking up victories.
COULD CALE BE WALLABIES’ ANSWER FOR ‘HYBRID’ PLAYER?
Write the Brumbies off at your peril. For not even the departure of Wallabies stars Len Ikitau, Tom Hooper and Noah Lolesio, and injuries to fellow Test players Tom Wright and Allan Alaalatoa, could stop them from notching up a comprehensive bonus-point win over the Force on Saturday night. After falling behind 10-0 early on, the Brumbies recovered to take a 14-10 halftime lead, and then completely dominated the second half thereafter.
And how nice it was to see the free-running Charlie Cale back in action at No. 8. Cale missed the entire 2025 season with stress fractures in his back, after being among the shock inclusions in Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt’s inaugural squad the season before. And he will surely be a player incoming Australia coach Les Kiss has on his radar, as part of what is a swollen back-row contingent.
Charlie Cale scored two tries in an impressive return from injury for the Brumbies in their big win over the Force Janelle St Pierre/Getty Images
What may play to Cale’s advantage, particularly when it comes to bench inclusions, is the fact that he is probably the closest thing to the “hybrid” player that the Springboks have pioneered as part of their 7-1 bench splits. With pace and footwork, and a 196cm and 105kg frame to match, Cale could cover No. 8 and, with plenty of reps on the training paddock, provide cover on the wing, too. With the aerial contest such a key part of rugby right now, Cale’s height could be an asset under the high ball, providing he puts plenty of work into what is widely regarded as the fourth set-piece nowadays. In the meantime, Cale will simply be hoping to say on the field this season.
And the Brumbies? Well they just roll on, too.
JOSEPH PULLS OFF ROUND 1 UPSET AS ALL BLACKS JOB BECKONS
The Highlanders don’t share the same roster talent nor depth of their fellow Kiwi franchises, but that doesn’t stop them from competing, particularly early in the season before injuries strike. That was the case last year when they won two of their first four, and dropped two further games by just one and two points respectively. Still, they started their 2026 season opener with the Crusaders as $3.20 outsiders with the bookies. But where they were pipped late by the Waratahs in Round 1 last year, the Highlanders this time flipped the script as Cam Millar converted a late penalty goal to secure the southerners a 25-23 win. And the result could not have been timelier for coach Jamie Joseph, who finds himself in a two-horse race for the vacant All Blacks job with former Wallabies coach Dave Rennie.
Joseph fits New Zealand Rugby’s criteria given his time as Japan coach and also boasts a Super Rugby title – as does Rennie [2] – from his first stint as Highlanders coach back in 2015. And while Rennie also has strong claims for the role, it feels as though the stars might be aligning for Joseph, despite the unavailability of his favoured assistant Tony Brown. More upsets like the one the Highlanders achieved on Friday night will only help his cause.
JORGENSEN’S FIVE-YEAR DEAL FEELS LIKE A STEAL
We are running short on superlatives for Max Jorgensen and the Wallabies star is still just 21. The Waratahs winger delivered yet another viral highlight in a magical individual performance against the Reds on Friday night, as NSW made their best start to the season in recent memory. The Waratahs picked up an all-important bonus point, after scoring three tries in the final 15 minutes to run out 36-12 winners.
But it was Jorgensen who stole the attention, with his breathtaking first-half try solidifying his place as Australian rugby’s brightest star – and one the game has safely locked away for five more seasons. Given his play of the past 12 months, Jorgensen’s deal, which has two sabbatical options and is rumoured to be between $900,000 and $1,000,000, feels like an absolute steal. That may have some rugby supporters coughing into their cornflakes, but Jorgensen is everything Australian rugby needs as the face of the game right now.
And when you consider his deal could be around $500k-600k cheaper than Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, and given what the two players have done on the field in recent times, the folk at Rugby Australia deserve a pat on the back. Yes, there is a first time for everything. The fact that RA could also get Jorgensen’s wage off their balance sheet for two seasons, yet also still have him in Wallaby gold, is another sound bit of contracting business.
The Waratahs will certainly miss him if he does activate those sabbaticals, which makes it all the more important fans get out and see him in action right now. His 55-metre effort against the Reds was rugby nirvana.
MOANA PROVE LIFE AFTER ARDIE MIGHT JUST EXIST
There were no bigger offseason departures in Super Rugby Pacific than Ardie Savea’s return to Japan, after the All Blacks star was named the tournament’s player of the year for 2025. Moana Pasifika, as a result, were a popular preseason tip to pick up the wooden spoon this year.
But their stunning first-round win, away to the Drua in Lautoka to boot, will serve as a huge confidence boost that they can continue the momentum built in 2025 despite Savea’s absence. And it was Miracle Faiilagi who led the charge in Fiji, the skipper scoring a hat trick in a performance that Savea himself would have been proud of. Faiilagi came on in leaps and bounds playing alongside Savea last year, and as the team’s first recruit straight out of Samoa, he is blazing a trail for the next group of on-island players.
Maintaining the same intensity they showed in Lautoka in stifling conditions week in, week out, will be the challenge for Pasifika. But this was certainly an impressive Round 1 showing.
Tupou Vaa’i dived over a couple of Blues defenders to score a key try in the Chiefs’ win in Auckland Dave Rowland/Getty Images
DIVES HAVE FANS SEARCHING FOR THE LAWBOOK
Rugby’s lawbook is a complicated and confusing piece of literature, one not made any simpler after Super Rugby announced five further law innovations for its 2026 season. But it was an existing law that had fans taking to social media over the weekend, specifically the act of diving to score a try.
While it was unclear whether Waratahs second-rower Miles Amatosero had grounded the ball when he attempted to score late in the first half against the Reds, referee Paul Williams declared his act illegal regardless.
A player can however dive over a tackle to score, if he is a legitimate position to do so, just as Chiefs lock Tupou Vaa’i was deemed to be in his side’s win over the Blues on Saturday. However, while Vaa’i’s try was awarded, Super Rugby Pacific officials later advised that the five-pointer actually should not have stood.
“Super Rugby Pacific management has reviewed the decision to award a try to Chiefs player Tupou Vaa’i in the 32nd minute of Saturday’s Round 1 game against the Blues,” the statement read.
The review concluded that Vaa’i’s actions constituted leaving the ground to avoid a tackle, rather than simply diving forward to score a try, and that as a result the try should not have been awarded.”
The statement then World Rugby’s Clarification 3-2022: “In principle, in a try scoring situation, if the action is deemed to be a dive forward for a try, then it should be permitted. If a player is deemed to have left the ground to avoid a tackle; or to jump, or hurdle a potential tackler, then this is dangerous play and should be sanctioned accordingly.”
