WATCH: Rhys Patchell hits the ground running with STUNNING try assist on Highlanders debut

Dylan Coetzee
Split with Highlanders scoring after a Rhys Patchell assist.

Split with Highlanders scoring after a Rhys Patchell assist.

Wales international fly-half Rhys Patchell marked his Super Rugby Pacific debut for the Highlanders with a stunning try assist for full-back Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens in the side’s 35-21 win over Moana Pasifika.

The play began with a maul being set deep in Moana Pasifika territory. Scrum-half Folau Fakatava played it to Sam Gilbert who deftly played a pass out the back door to Patchell.

The defence appeared to have covered the space quite nicely, that was until the Welsh veteran absolutely ripped a pass out wide to his full-back who found himself in acres of space. Raitumaitavuki-Kneepkens backed himself and pinned his ears back to cross in the corner.

It was a daring play by Patchell and one that was certainly high risk/high reward with the Welshman reaping the rewards on this occasion.

The hosts scored five tries on the day with their final crossing arguably their best and possibly an early contender for try of the season, with the versatile Gilbert finishing off a beauty.

This one starts with the Highlanders on their 22-metre line as the ball is played out to flanker Sean Withy who threw a cheeky dummy, stepped on the outside shoulder of the defender and showed impressive pace to run in behind the defence.

Knowing he was not quick enough to evade the cover defence, Withy flung a pass outside to Jonah Nareki who cut in beautifully, beating a couple of defenders in the process. The wing realised he could not get much further and laid it off to Fakatava who immediately threw an audacious pass out the back door to Billy Harmon, who much to the delight of all coaches out there played a textbook draw and pass with Gilbert finishing it in the corner.

Just end-to-end stuff coming out of Super Rugby Pacific underlining the excitement in the tournament.

The Highlanders’ new era with Jamie Joseph at the helm began with an encouraging win. There will be much to improve on as Moana Pasifika kept within touching distance for an extended period of the game.

The Dunedin men host the Blues next Friday in round two with the Auckland side also coming off a victory in the opening round.

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Highlanders Rhys Patchell

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