ODT Online rugby writer Jeff Cheshire rates the Highlanders after their win over the Crusaders in Christchurch last night.
Ben Smith 7/10: Not quite at his sparkling best and was well contained, but supported well to score his try, looked to create and came up with a couple of crucial turnovers.
Waisake Naholo 7.5/10: Dangerous with ball in hand, constantly beating defenders on a night when he had little room to work with. Took his chance well to score a crucial intercept try.
Malakai Fekitoa 6.5/10: Made a couple of mistakes with his angles on defence early, but came right and began to make more of an impact with ball in hand in the second half too.
Shaun Treeby 7/10: Was probably the Highlanders' best back in the first half where he tidied up well and made a few handy runs.
Patrick Osborne 5/10: Was below average in the first half, dropping a couple of high balls and not seeing much other ball. Looked better in the second half as the game loosened up.
Lima Sopoaga 7/10: Took a gap in the last play before halftime to set up and outstanding try, then looked lively and brought flair in abundance from the point onwards. Was unlucky to be yellow-carded.
Aaron Smith 6/10: Had a mixed night, making a few mistakes and not getting his kicking quite spot on, but showed great awareness to throw the pass to set up the third try.
Nasi Manu 7/10: Worked pretty hard and added physicality in the tight. Led the way with the counter-rucking too, which is something the Highlanders have not done for a few years.
James Lentjes 6/10: Pretty solid, making tackles and getting to the breakdown, although was slightly late to get into position which left a gap in the line when the Crusaders scored their second try.
Elliot Dixon 6.5/10: Got pretty involved on defence and did well at set-piece.
Joe Wheeler 7/10: Another who got really stuck in and was aggressive at the breakdown.
Tom Franklin 6/10: Similar to Wheeler, got to a lot of breakdowns and added physicality.
Josh Hohneck 5/10: Went off and by the looks of the knock, probably should not have come back on regardless of the concussion test. Was pretty quiet by his standards for the most part.
Ash Dixon 6/10: Ran hard and got his hands on the ball a few times, although did not get much chance to shine as the Highlanders were under pressure for most of his time on the park.
Brendon Edmunds 6.5/10: Had a quiet first half, but then came back on in the second and was impressive, tackling well in the open and getting around the park well.
Liam Coltman 6.5/10: Threw well and was fairly strong around the park.
Daniel Lienert-Brown (No Rating): Came on for 12 minutes before having to leave again, although admittedly this was the best period of the game for the Highlanders.
Pingi Tala'apitanga (No Rating): Had a couple of spurts and was solid in both, although was not on long enough in either to make a huge impact.
Mark Reddish 7/10: Was prominent in his 25 minutes, adding physicality and providing grit in closing out the game after the brilliance of the start of the second half.
Dan Pryor 7/10: Another who came on and was outstanding in closing the game out in the final 25 minutes. Was fast around the field and showed urgency in getting to the breakdown.
Fumiaki Tanaka (No Rating): Pretty solid, passed well enough and did a good job of organizing the final period of pick and go to finish the game off.
Marty Banks (No Rating): Did not get much of a chance to do anything, the team was defending most of the time he was on the park.
Jason Emery 7/10: Played really well after coming on for Treeby. Did a good job running the ball and was safe on defence.
