We were lucky he made it to Dunedin in the first place.
Hunt, who graduated with a surveying degree from the University of Otago, has signed with the Blues and will play in Auckland in 2021.
Hunt (25) comes from Auckland and attended Westlake Boys’ High School.
The openside flanker said his decision to head back to Auckland was driven by wanting to be close to his partner and family.
“For me, it is about coming home to play my rugby. My partner and family are both in Auckland which was a big motivator for me,” Hunt said.
“I grew up watching the Blues and I have always been a big fan, so this is an exciting opportunity for me.”
Hunt headed south after completing school although it was a last-minute decision to come to Dunedin to study.
He arrived late in Dunedin and ended up playing for the University Golds colts side, the club’s second colts teams.
He quickly stood out and the next year was in the University premier side for which he started to make an impression.
The first-class scene came calling and he made his debut for Otago off the bench against Auckland in 2015.
His breakout year was 2017 when James Lentjes suffered an elbow injury, Shane Christie was suffering from a mystery illness and Dan Pryor was recovering from a serious knee injury.
With the Highlanders loose forward decimated by injuries and Hunt having trained with them in the pre-season, he was called into the full squad, third game into the season to replace Lentjes.
He proceeded to play 12 games that year and ended up as an All Black, gaining a cap in the side’s game against the French Barbarians. He was awarded a test cap against Japan the following year when playing for North Harbour.
Hunt played 45 games for the Highlanders and was in outstanding form for the side this season. He was the top tackler in the competition and got all around the field as the Highlanders made a real impression.
The Highlanders now have to find another openside flanker.
Otago’s Slade McDowall is the obvious candidate but the side is sure to cast their net wide.
■ Highlanders prop Daniel Lienert-Brown has been called into the South team for next week’s North-South match.
He replaces Alex Hodgman who has pulled out because of a family matter.
South hooker Andrew Makalio actually made his first-class debut for Wairarapa-Bush so should have not been selected for the South side. But he will be allowed to play as it was seen as a technical error.
