Five-eighth Beauden Barrett dived on a loose ball with a little over 11 minutes remaining to score a try that sealed the Wellington Hurricanes' first Super Rugby title with a 20-3 victory over South Africa's Lions on Saturday.
Barrett pounced after confusion by the Lions inside their own 22-metre area to give his side a 17-point advantage, while he added 10 points from the boot in terrible weather conditions.
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Hurricanes overcome brave Lions in Wellington
The Hurricanes are the 2016 Super Rugby champions after an impressive defensive effort in the final game of this year's comp.
Hurricanes winger Cory Jane also scored a try in the first half as the home side's impressive defensive line speed ensured they sealed the title in front of a delirious sell-out crowd of 34,973.
Five-eighth Elton Jantjies kicked the visitors' only points with a first-half penalty as the Lions struggled against the yellow-and-black wall of defenders.
"Our line speed was just too much," Hurricanes captain Dane Coles told reporters. "A massive effort from the lads.
"Defence wins you games and it wins you championships so they have to take a massive rap for that."
Both sides had endured more than 20 years of pain prior to reaching Saturday's final.
The Lions had perennially been South Africa's worst side in the competition and were even relegated from Super Rugby in 2013 before rebuilding through the domestic Currie Cup.
The Hurricanes had romped through last year's competition and were heavy favourites to clinch their first title only to fall apart in the final against the Highlanders.
This year's team, with only six players who began last year's final starting on Saturday, were not going to let lightning strike twice, however.
The Hurricanes line speed on defence, which has been clinical since the competition resumed following the June international break, was in the face of the Lions' playmakers, with Jantjies constantly harried.
The 26-year-old was restricted to shovelling the ball to runners outside him and kicking for territory to try to put the Hurricanes under pressure.
The home side managed to take a 10-3 lead into the break, courtesy of a Barrett penalty and a converted try to Jane that came about through their relentless defence inside the Lions territory when centre Lionel Mapoe kicked the ball straight back to the winger.
Barrett added his second penalty after halftime to extend the lead to 13-3 before he pounced when the Lions failed to clear the ball from a defensive lineout to seal the win.
"Credit to Beauden Barrett," Lions coach Johan Ackermann said. "He controlled the game exceptionally.
"But it boiled down to two incidents where we tried to kick the ball (clear) and when we lost the lineout. That's finals.
"Today it was just two moments that took it away from us."Â
Reuters
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