Super Rugby Round 7

Five in a row for the Chiefs as Blues see lead slip away

The Chiefs achieved a fifth successive victory after coming from behind to dispatch the Blues 29-23 at Stadium Waikato.

The Blues had built a 20-10 lead early in a lively second half but this season's Super Rugby pacesetters responded with tries from fly-half Aaron Cruden and centre Seta Tamanivalu to draw level.

Full-back Damian McKenzie landed the conversion before the result was assured when New Zealand lock Brodie Retallick crashed over from short range with two minutes remaining.

Richie Mo'unga kicks the Crusaders to last-gasp victory over Western Force

The Crusaders conjured a late try, converted by Richie Mo'unga, to send the Force spinning to a 20-19 defeat in Perth.

The Australian team plundered a 61st-minute touch down through replacement Ryan Louwrens, who caught the ball after it squirted from the arms of Matt Hodgson in the tackle, to seize a 19-13 lead after Peter Grant had also notched four penalties.

But Super Rugby play-off hopefuls the Crusaders, who scored first-half tries through Mitchell Drummond and Johnny McNicholl, dominated the final 10 minutes and were eventually rewarded when flanker Jordan Taufua crossed in the closing moments with Mo'unga converting.

Savea treble helps Hurricanes hit back to win

All Black Julian Savea scored a hat-trick of tries as the Hurricanes hit back from a first-half deficit to overcome the Jaguares 40-22 in Wellington.

Savea crossed twice just before the interval after the New Zealanders had fallen 12-7 behind when Beauden Barrett's converted score was cancelled out by tries from Leonardo Senatore and Matias Moroni.

Savea completed his treble after Dan Coles had touched down and Ben May added another score late on, with Barrett adding five conversions, meaning Martin Landajo's try was mere consolation for the Argentinians, for whom Nicolas Sanchez kicked seven points.

Reds hold on for first win of the season

Queensland Reds picked up their first win of the Super Rugby season at the sixth attempt after fighting off a second-half Highlanders comeback to secure a 28-27 victory at Suncorp Stadium.

The Reds played some thrilling rugby in the first half, and were deservedly 22-6 ahead at the break, tries from Liam Gill, Nick Frisby and Samu Kerevi doing the damage, with the Highlanders only able to respond through Lima Sopoaga's two penalties.

Jake McIntyre added a couple of penalties to stretch the home lead, but with legs tiring, Aaron Smith crossed for the Highlanders on the hour followed by a try from Malakai Fekitoa, and Sopoaga too went over, meaning Reds fans had a nervy wait before celebrating their first win of their 2016 campaign.

Lions too strong for Sharks

The Lions leapfrogged the Natal Sharks to the top of the Africa 2 Super Rugby Conference after a 24-9 triumph in Durban.

First-half tries from lock Andries Ferreira and centre Lionel Mapoe put Lions in the driving seat, although both were only awarded after TMO reviews. Elton Jantjies added a conversion and four penalties to wrap up the win.

The Sharks, who have now lost back-to-back games at home, were unable to cross the whitewash at the Kings Park Stadium with all their points came from fullback Joe Pietersen's boot.