Hurricanes

A SANZAAR Foul Play Review Committee on Monday night deemed that Savea should front the judiciary.

Savea is alleged to have contravened Law 9.27: A player must not do anything that is against the spirit of good sportsmanship.

RNZ reports Savea had earlier apologised for the gesture aimed at a Rebels player and had hoped it wouldn't result in judicial action.

Coach Jason Holland confirmed young star Ruben Love and new signing Brett Cameron would both miss their trip to Australia for early matches against the Reds and Rebels after picking up injuries during the pre-season.

Love has been sidelined with an ongoing groin issue, which has limited his involvement during training, while Cameron suffered a grade two calf tear in their warm- up match against the Blues last weekend.

Heading into the new Super Rugby Pacific season, Holland said the Hurricanes management have set themselves the goal of getting as many new players into the All Blacks set-up as possible.

Holland believed there were three or four knocking on the door, including promising playmaker Ruben Love.

Helping his cause, the 21-year-old is set for a consistent run at fullback with Jordie Barrett being retained as a second-five, a move Holland insisted was not influenced by the All Blacks, but one that should please Ian Foster and co nonetheless.

The 27-22 victory concluded a day of drama in the final round of the regular season and sent the Force above the Highlanders into the eighth and final spot in the playoffs.

The Highlanders only need to avoid defeat against the Melbourne Rebels in Sunday's last match of the round, however, to leapfrog the Force and earn a quarter-final fixture against the Blues at Eden Park next week.

The 25-year-old, whose father is Samoan, raised his middle finger at the crowd after the Hurricanes' 22-18 win and said it was in reaction to racial slurs.

"I love when the crowds are hyped and throw chat from the stands. But there's a line and just because you're in the crowd doesn't give you the right to talk about my mother or my race," Kirifi wrote on social media.

"Abuse from the sideline is part of our job, and it's a part I personally love - however, this doesn't justify racial slurs or comments about my family."

Playing at pace, the Hurricanes chalked up a staggering eleven tries to the visitors single consolation effort at Sky Stadium.

Back on home soil, the Wellington side had plenty of room to run in attack, securing a 26-nil lead by half-time.

Fullback Josh Moorby scored a hat-trick, with two tries each to Billy Proctor and Wes Goosen.

Of note, the Hurricanes welcomed veterans Dane Coles and 108-test All Blacks prop Owen Franks off the bench.

Franks was making his Hurricanes debut after recovering from a torn Achilles.

There are nine changes to the starting line-up from the side that took on the Highlanders last week.

"We're preparing for a very physical game this week against a very good Hurricanes team. The boys are really wanting to get out there this week to show the Wellington crowd and our fans in New Zealand what they can do," said Byrne.

In the front row, prop Haereiti Hetet retains his loosehead prop position, joined by Zuriel Togiatama at hooker and Samuela Tawake at tighthead. Isoa Nasilasila partners Sorovakatini Tuifagalele in the second row.

Coles who's played 128 games for the Hurricanes will finally take the field having recovered from the hamstring injury he suffered on the All Blacks Northern Tour at the end of last year.

"We've taken it slowly with him to make sure he's 100% when he comes back, and he's absolutely flying around the place now," said coach Jason Holland.

There are some obvious things with Colesy, about what he'll bring in creating a bit of edge around the group and the way he leads, which is great for our boys. He's dying to play and dying to contribute."

Trailing 17-0 after half-an-hour, they scored 30 unanswered points to complete a 30-17 win over the Queensland Reds in Melbourne on Saturday night.

Two first half yellow cards didn't help the Canes' cause, as the Queensland side scored a pair of early tries to put themselves in the box seat.

However, once the New Zealand side were back to the full complement, they bagged two tries of their own to be just three points adrift at the break.

The Highlanders are set to welcome the Hurricanes to Dunedin for a final New Zealand derby before both sides take on the Australian leg of the Super Rugby Pacific competition.

The two sides met in Round Three with the Hurricanes finishing the match victorious in a 21-14 win.

The Hurricanes will come into the game with added motivation having narrowly missed out on a win against the Crusaders in the last round.

Hurricanes coach Jason Holland has named a refreshed lineup with only seven players remaining from the starting line-up that played the Crusaders.