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The Live Sport Bible is here!Brumbies left ‘embarrassed’ after record breaking defeat
Nicholas Quinlan • June 6th, 2026 1:27 pm
The ACT Brumbies have been left embarrassed and disappointed after suffering a record-breaking defeat to end their season in the Qualifying Final.
After winning their first three games to top the ladder, the Brumbies were unable to find form throughout the rest of the season seeing them just hold onto 6th spot.
As a result, they faced the ladder-leading Hurricanes in the first week of finals in Wellington on Friday night.
And the Hurricanes showed why they are the favourites to win it all, managing to capitalise on early mistakes to run out to a 31-0 lead within 32 minutes before Stephen Larkham’s men got on the scoreboard with Corey Toole scoring a try before the main break.
Despite the slight break in momentum, the Canes continue to ply on the score, managing to score another five tries with ACT only managing one try, resulting in a 66-12 loss, the biggest for an Australian side in the finals.
It’s also the most points that the Brumbies have conceded in a single match in franchise history.
Speaking after the match, Larkham expressed his frustrations to the media with their season coming to an end.
“It’s embarrassing,” Larkham said.
“It was frustrating and disappointing, and all the adjectives you’d like to use when you’re on the other side of the scoreboard, and we’re chasing the game, and we’re making it worse by turning the ball over in our end, and they capitalise on that and go and score.
“It seemed like the harder we tried, the worse things got out there.
“There’s a lot of frustration internally as well, don’t worry. You guys (the fans) will be disappointed and frustrated, and we’re equally as frustrated and disappointed with ourselves.”
The Hurricanes will now host a semi-final against the highest-ranked loser, which will be determined by Saturday night.
That now leaves the Queensland Reds as the only Australian side left in the finals.
They will play the Chiefs on Saturday night in Hamilton as they look to become the first Australian Super Rugby team to win a final in New Zealand in the competition’s 30-year history after 22 straight defeats.
