Karmichael Hunt solid at flyhalf as Reds thump Crusaders 35-12 in Super Rugby trial at Ballymore

A rejuvenated Will Genia and James Horwill excelled to give Karmichael Hunt an armchair ride to his first significant scalp as a Reds player.

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A rejuvenated Will Genia and James Horwill excelled like game-breakers of old at Ballymore to give Karmichael Hunt an armchair ride to his first significant scalp as a Reds player.

Trial form is notoriously unreliable but the energy and intent that produced a 28-0 shut-out of the vaunted Crusaders by half-time was as good a confidence-booster as you can get a week out from the Super Rugby season opener.

You don’t smack the Crusaders by that margin in any half of rugby, especially with Dan Carter and six other All Blacks in the starting side.

The job was finished 35-12 near full-time when 104kg steamroller Samu Kerevi ran on to a Nick Frisby bounce-pass to score under XXXX Hill where the most boisterous elements of a 11,270-strong crowd were gathered.

Karmichael Hunt keeps his eye on the ball.

Such was the zeal of the Reds defence and another excellent trial from the pack, Hunt played on the front foot at flyhalf for his 50 minutes on the field.

His passing was clean but without any attempt at deception except for a short ball that sent centre Anthony Faingaa scything through the defence.

The big upside was his composure, as expected, and hunger for the fight. He dabbed a few nice kicks and when one short kick flew straight to fullback Colin Slade he chased hard and thumped the All Black in a big tackle.

Hunt was able to play a solid role because the Reds had other well-grooved points of attack like halfback Genia darting the blindside or cleverly chip kicking from a quick tap to set up a fine first try for fullback Jamie-Jerry Taulagi.

Will Genia shapes to pass for the Reds.

It was a strong pass mark considering he last played No. 10 five years ago in a couple of matches for French club Biarritz and has no real background as a playmaker.

Hunt showed he’ll be a big asset for the Reds this season. He even banged over four conversions but it’s hard to see anyone but James O’Connor, with his extra flyhalf experience, giving extra dimensions to No. 10 against the ACT Brumbies in Canberra next Friday night. Hunt should be a weapon from fullback.

Genia sniped from the ruckbase, danced again with his footwork and had the edge back in his game after playing the second half of last season for the Reds with a debilitating ankle injury that required surgery.

Chris Kuridrani tries to break through a Crusaders tackle.

Up front, lock Horwill bullocked over for two tries from close range, guided the lineout and was at the core of the scrum shunt than generated a generous penalty try.

The NFL-loving Horwill was astonished that the Seattle Seahawks ignored star running back Marshawn Lynch in this week’s Super Bowl when just one storming run of a few metres was needed to trump the New England Patriots at the death.

He wasn’t to be denied in the same red zone. Horwill’s running stats were two carries and four metres close to the tryline but he powered over both times.

Karmichael Hunt looks for a Reds teammate.

You look for attitude and wanting to work in defence in trials. There was bucketloads in the way new skipper James Slipper, the Faingaa twins and any number of teammates tackled when the Crusaders probed with their dangerous handling rushes.

New tighthead prop Sam Talakai produced his second strong trial to book a Super Rugby debut against the Brumbies while Taulagi was transformed from the hesitant rookie of last year.

REDS 35 (J Horwill 2, J-J Taulagi, S Kerevi tries; pen try; K Hunt 4 conv, N Frisby conv) bt CRUSADERS 12 (L Romano, M Todd tries; D Carter 2 conv)

A healthy crowd watched the Reds tackle the Crusaders at Ballymore.

Originally published as Karmichael Hunt solid at flyhalf as Reds thump Crusaders 35-12 in Super Rugby trial at Ballymore