2013 Blues season

The 2013 Blues season will be the team's 18th season in the Super Rugby competition. The Blues' pre-season began on February 2, and the regular season began on February 23. The team played 16 regular season matches, with byes in rounds 5 and 10. They did not play in rounds 1 and 17, which was only be contested by Australian teams as a result of the 2013 British and Irish Lions tour to Australia. The Blues played all teams within the New Zealand conference twice, and all other teams once, with the exception of the Western Force and Southern Kings. The 2013 team was captained by Ali Williams and coached by Sir John Kirwan.

2013 Blues season
Team information
Coach Sir John Kirwan
Captain
StadiumEden Park, North Harbour Stadium
Avg. Attend.19,661
High. Attend.31,014
Low. Attend.10,811
Top scorers
TriesFrank Halai (5)
PointsChris Noakes (26)
< 2012 List of seasons

Pre-season

The first of three pre-season fixtures was on the 2nd of February against the Queensland Reds in Toowoomba. This was followed by a home match against the New South Wales Waratahs at Toll Stadium on February 9 and a final match on February 15 against the Highlanders at Queenstown Events Centre.

Fixtures

Regular season

The Blues regular season will begin on February 23 with an away fixture against the Hurricanes, and will finish on July 13, with a home fixture against the Chiefs.

Fixtures

Tour Matches

On the 4th of April it was announced that the Blues would play a one-off match against France as a midweek fixture during their tour of New Zealand in June.[4] The match was held on June 11 at North Harbour Stadium and was the first time a New Zealand-based Super Rugby team has played against an international side.

Player Summary

Player statistics through round five of the 2013 Super Rugby season are shown below:[5]

Overall Summary
Cap # Player Position(s) Apps. Tries Cons. Pens. Drps. Pts. W.C. Y.C. R.C.
74 Keven MealamuHooker000000---
93 Ali Williams (c)Lock500000---
137 Anthony BoricLock200000---
149 Tom McCartneyHooker500000---
154 Rene RangerWing, Centre5200010---
159 Peter SailiFlanker, No. 8400000---
165 Charlie FaumuinaProp400000---
180 Luke BraidFlanker510005---
186 Piri WeepuHalf-back, First five-eighth5035021---
188 Angus Ta'avaoProp500000---
192 Francis SailiWing, Centre500000---
193 Liaki MoliLock200000---
195 George MoalaWing4200010---
196 James ParsonsHooker510005---
197 Steve LuatuaLock, Flanker510005---
199 Charles PiutauWing, Fullback5300015---
200 Albert NikoroWing, Fullback100000---
201 Frank HalaiWing5400020-1-
202 Chris NoakesFirst five-eighth4135026---
203 Culum RetallickLock200000---
204 Brendon O'ConnorFlanker500000---
205 Bryn HallHalfback101002---
206 Quentin MacDonaldHooker300000---
207 Baden KerrFirst five-eighth3113013---
208 Jackson WillisonSecond five-eighth, Centre300000---
209 Kane BarrettLock, Flanker100000---
210 Waisake NaholoWing100000---
211 Tim PerryProp100000---
212 Ronald RaaymakersLock, Flanker100000---
213 Jamison Gibson-ParkHalfback300000---
214 Marty McKenzieUtility Back100000---
N/A Malakai FekitoaSecond five-eighth, Centre000000---
N/A Ofa Tu'ungafasiProp000000---

Legend: Apps. = Appearances, Cons. = Conversions, Pens. = Penalties, Drps. = Drop Goals, Pts. = Total points, W.C. = White cards, Y.C. = Yellow cards, R.C. = Red cards

Top Point Scorers
Rank Player Points
1 Chris Noakes26
2 Piri Weepu21
3 Frank Halai20
4 Charles Piutau15
5 Baden Kerr13

Top Try Scorers
Rank Player Tries
1 Frank Halai4
2 Charles Piutau3
3= Rene Ranger2
3= George Moala2
5=Five players1

Standings

The standings through the final round of the 2013 season are shown below:

New Zealand Conference
Pos Team Rnd W D L Bye PF PA PD TF TA TB LB Pts
1 Chiefs1812042458364+9450388266
2 Crusaders1811052446307+13944315360
3 Blues1860102347364−1740366644
4 Hurricanes1860102386457−7141494541
5 Highlanders1830132374496−12240554529
Overall Standings
Pos Team Rnd W D L Bye PF PA PD TF TA TB LB Pts
1 Chiefs1812042458364+9450388266
2 Bulls1812042448330+11841345263
3 Brumbies1810242430295+13543315360
4 Crusaders1811052446307+13944315360
5 Reds1810242321296+2531234258
6 Cheetahs1810062382358+2438322454
7 Stormers189072346292+5430181550
8 Sharks188082384305+7940313548
9 Waratahs188082411371+4045341445
10 Blues1860102347364−1740366644
11 Hurricanes1860102386457−7141494541
12 Rebels1850112382515−13344654537
13 Force1841112267366−9926340531
14 Highlanders1830132374496−12240554529
15 Southern Kings1831122298564−26627692024

Conference leaders, qualify to finals.
Wildcard teams, qualify to finals.

Source: sanzarrugby.com Legend: Pos = Position, Rnd = Round, W = Win, D = Draw, L = Loss, PF = Points For, PA = Points Against, PD = Points Difference, TB = Four-try bonus points, LB = Close loss bonus points, Pts = Competition Points

Round by Round Result Summary

Round 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Ground - A H H - A A H H - A H H A H A - A A H
Result N/A W W L B L L W W B L W W L L L N/A L L L
Pos (Conf) N/A 1 2 2 2 3 4 3 2 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
Pos (Overall) N/A 2 4 6 4 6 9 7 5 2 5 5 5 6 7 7 8 8 9 10

Legend: H = Home, A = Away, W = Win, D = Draw, L = Loss, B = Bye, Pos = Position, Conf = Conference

See also

2013 Super Rugby season

References

  1. http://www.thechronicle.com.au/photos/super-rugby-draws-crowd/18294/
  2. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=10864422
  3. http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/super-rugby/8312017/Lethargic-Highlanders-struggle-to-get-going
  4. "Blues to play france". New Zealand Herald. 4 April 2013. Retrieved 5 April 2013.
  5. http://www.foxsports.com.au/rugby/super-rugby/teams/blues
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