Sean Maloney: Brumby Jack's darkest night relived as runaway props steal the Super Rugby show
We might only be halfway through the Super Rugby Pacific season but we can now officially label it the most electrifying and unpredictable ever.
Results have become a complete lottery, props are scoring tries from 50m out and Aussie derbies previously labelled a 'grind' have become compelling, quality viewing. The whole thing is wild.
On top of SRP, there was a weekend of action at the Hong Kong Sevens, Super Rugby Women's wrapped its regular season and a champion from the rugby media-scape made a surprise appearance.
Watch all the action from the 2025 Super Rugby Pacific season on Stan Sport, the only place to watch every match ad free, live and on demand
RUNAWAY ROBERTSON
For many, there is no better sight in rugby than a prop running free.
It doesn't happen often, but when it does, the moment is given immediate iconic status.
Matt Dunning, former Wallabies prop and much loved big man, blew the roof off the Sydney Football Stadium with a couple of his long range runs.
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Greg Holmes famously charged to the line from 60m out in a Test match vs Ireland.
Those two now have company in the form of Western Force prop Tom Robertson.
The cauliflower-eared, 115kg scrummaging speed machine took off on the halfway line at Suncorp Stadium following a pop pass from Nick Champion de Crespigny and was not for catching… until he was.
'Throbber,' was dropped five metres from the line but the kinetic energy generated saw him slide all the way home with two defenders on his back.
"Mate, I'm just lucky it was so wet," he humbly told me at Brisbane Airport before their flight home on Sunday.
His coach Simon Cron summed the magical moment up really well during the broadcast on Nine and Stan Sport.
"It was good to watch wasn't it. He's a really good ball carrier. big Throbber. Beautiful man."
Amen, Cronny.
TIZZANO GOES TOP
Carlo Tizzano's dream run continues with the Force backrower creating history for his club on Saturday.
His two-try haul, the third double he's bagged this year, saw him become the Force's top single season try-scorer after 20 years of the club's existence.
Tizzano edged past the extremely classy Scott Staniforth who had previously scored nine back in 2009.
The hard-nosed backrower, who loves to scrap and thrives on the hand-to-hand combat front, will have no doubt impressed Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt who was at Suncorp catching the derby.
DEMOLITION DERBIES
For a good period of time over the last 15 years of Super Rugby, Aussie fans had lamented that the New Zealand derbies were a superior watch.
You will have heard it over and over.
"Like we're watching a different sport... those 5.30pm games, wow. The Aussie sides just cancel each other out and it's tough to watch."
No more.
The Reds vs Force game was equal parts brilliant and brutal in astonishingly bad conditions.
Earlier in the season the first bout was decided in the 84th minute.
Last week, the Brumbies and Waratahs turned it on in Sydney.
Back in round two, the Force beat the Brumbies in Canberra for the first time in over 5000 days.
Putting it simply, the Aussie derbies are awesome again.
Circle April 12 as your next must watch, that's when the Reds and Brumbies clash in Brisbane.
POWER OF PELLEGRINI AND PASIFIKA
Moana Pasifika scored the biggest upset in recent memory, hammering the Crusaders in Christchurch on Saturday.
They heaped the most points ever on the 'Saders at the venue and came away as easy 45-29 winners.
Putting the shock result into context, the algorithm suggested the home team would win by 22.
In the middle of the emotional win was a flyhalf who has strong ties to Sydney and is now one of Pasifika's most valuable players.
Patrick Pellegrini of Moana Pasifika is congratulated by his teammates after scoring a try. Getty
Pat Pellegrini is a West Harbour Pirates junior and he also starred with Randwick in the Shute Shield.
He also represented NSW at schoolboys and under-20 level.
The 26-year-old is now a Tonga international as well. having made his debut in the lead up to the 2023 Rugby World Cup where he went on to earn three caps.
Pellegrini scored a wonderful try and was given man of the match honours in Christchurch.
The Pasifika play the Waratahs next and Pellegrini will be up against a number of familiar faces up in Auckland.
BRUMBIES BOUNCE BACK
They copped a massive scare from the Highlanders in Canberra, but the Brumbies found a way late to jag the win ahead of their bye week.
The victory, against a very good 'Landers outfit, keeps them inside the top four and on track for the finals.
One man who's been there and done it in the capital is former Brumbies media manager Elliot Woods.
A few of the Stan crew caught up with the hugely popular 'Woodsy' following the game on Friday and forced him to relive some of the hilarious off-field issues which had a habit of finding him.
Most famously there was the Brumby Jack incident of 2014 where Woods had given the green light to Clyde Rathbone's brother Dayne to wear the suit for the night.
Brumby Jack is in all sorts. YouTube
Apparently it was a lifelong dream of Dayne's to be a mascot at a game, so 'Woodsy' did the leg work and vouched for him with the powers that be.
Unfortunately it all ended in tears at halftime when Dayne, full of Powerade and short on oxygen inside the suit, pulled one too many cartwheels.
It led to him crawling around on all fours and projectile vomiting in front of shocked fans.
"You guys think that's funny, but I had to front the board and explain my actions," he told me at the time.
Brumby Jack is in all sorts. YouTube
There's other hilarious stories, like the time one of Woods' mates got access to coach Jake White's Twitter account on Woods' phone and started live tweeting while the Brumbies were playing.
Thankfully he survived that too, but hearing him recall it may have triggered some level of PTSD.
As former Brumbies halfback Nic White said to me on Sunday: "Woodsy, he's one of the greats."
Fans of United States cheer during the Hong Kong Sevens at Kai Tak Stadium. Getty
HECTIC IN HONG KONG
I'm not sure you could've got more big names in the game in the same place at the same time than Kai Tak Stadium for the Hong Kong Sevens.
How's this for a line-up: Brian O'Driscoll, Bryan Habana, Drew Mitchell, Waisale Serevi, Matt Giteau, Sean Fitzpatrick, Rob Kearney, Adam Ashley-Cooper, Alicia Lucas, Simon Shaw, Scott Hastings, Andy Goode and Jim Hamilton.
On field, the Aussies played super.
With an average age of just 21, the women pushed New Zealand all the way in the final, going down by just a converted try.
Maddi Levi was incredible again and broke the record for tries scored in a tournament in HK.
The men were excellent as well, defeating South Africa and Fiji on their way to a bronze medal with 19-year-old gun Sid Harvey scoring the match winner in their final match.
It looked an incredible weekend at the new look stadium which is located on the mainland rather than the island.
SUPER RUGBY WOMEN'S SEMIS SORTED
We are locked and loaded for the playoffs in SRW following the end of the regular season.
NSW snuck home against an impressive Brumbies outfit while Queensland unloaded on the Force to lock in the semi-final matchups.
It'll be the Waratahs vs Force at Leichhardt Oval while the Reds will face off against the Drua in Brisbane.
After a shock round one loss, the Waratahs have reclaimed favouritism for the title, however the Reds are looking extremely dangerous behind Eva Karpani.
The Wallaroos prop scored three tries on the weekend and, remarkably, looks to have gotten even quicker again.
The full match highlights are worth re-watching again for Karpani's performance alone, she is great viewing.
Catch you all on Monday night on Between Two Posts with Morgan Turinui and Matt Burke and then again on Tuesday for BTP Extra with the weekend's hero, Robertson.
