Cusaders wing Manasa Mataele's incredible pass had many waxing lyrical
Twitter reacts to ridiculous Mataele offload in Super Rugby
The Crusaders had a field day against the Hurricanes in Super Rugby on Saturday, winning 38-22, but there was one moment that stood out among the rest. Check out this superhuman offload form Fiji-born wing Manasa Mataele. How on earth did he do that?
#SuperRugby – HALFTIME:
Crusaders 24-0 Hurricanes
The defending champions have been relentless in the opening half and have run in four tries so far.
Live Vodacom #SuperRugby coverage continues on SS1 & DStv Now >> https://t.co/3wUsZ1pF9y pic.twitter.com/CCPUD6dZqk
— SuperSport (@SuperSportTV) February 23, 2019
As you can imagine, after the initial shock of seeing this out-the-back flip to set up Richie Mo’unga for a try, some took to social media to voice their delight and admiration for the piece of skill.
Here are a few of the comments made.
Ban this sick filth https://t.co/S5hr0cHnOn
— Alan Dymock (@AlanDymock) February 23, 2019
Mad Mourad on speed dial to his agent. ????? https://t.co/wvvJKapDQt
— Rupert Cox (@RupertCoxSKY) February 23, 2019
The Death Star is fully operational https://t.co/U8no6WYy1g
— Josh Gardner (@joshgardner) February 23, 2019
?⚫️ 23' Try Richie Mo'unga!! Well done Manasa Mataele, keeping that ball in the field of play! Acrobatics! | Crusaders 10 – 0 Hurricanes #CRUvHUR #crusadeon #likenoother ⚔️
— #RugbyCrusaders (@RugbyCrusaders) February 23, 2019
Is Mataele even human??? What an offload! ? https://t.co/wtMydC5Xsq
— SA Rugby magazine (@SARugbymag) February 23, 2019
Mataele!!! How the hell did he throw that pass? #CRUvHUR
— Scotty Stevenson (@sumostevenson) February 23, 2019
Woken up early to show the boys a bit of live Super Rugby and we get treated to the best offload assist I’ve ever seen… Manasa Mataele what is that??! ?? #CRUvHUR pic.twitter.com/f5TQTKHynV
— Rhys Jones (@Rhysj37) February 23, 2019
This defies gravity, logic, sense…. https://t.co/AlQhbLux4L
— Laura-Jane Jones (@MissLJJ) February 23, 2019
The crusaders are reigning Super Rugby champions and are hunting for their third title in a row. You can read our piece on the stars to keep an eye on in this year’s tournament here – Super Rugby Players To Watch.
Did you know that former All Blacks wing and ex-Crusaders flyer Seta Tamanivalu is Mataele’s uncle? Both men were born in Fiji and actually joined up at the ‘Saders. Tamanivalu now plays for Bordeaux Bègles in France’s Top 14.
The 22-year-old Mataele is currently uncapped, though he did star for Fiji U18s. It was his performances for them against age-grade sides from Australia and New Zealand that got him spotted by Kiwi sides. He first moved to Taranaki from Suva to join their academy and from there earned a Super Rugby spot with the Crusaders.
Mataele and Tamanivalu have played a fair bit together, but when they first did it for Taranaki, the younger man said: “When we played together against Bay of Plenty, that was just awesome because it was something that I always wanted to do, to play with a family member in the same team. The fact that he was also an All Black, that just made it even more special.”
Forget relatives or any Test future – let’s just enjoy that offload for now. Wow, it was good!
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