Blues 34 - 29 Reds
FULLTIME: The Blues win a penalty and boot the ball into touch and that is it. The Blues survive and claim a 34-29 win in Samoa. Average game to be fair. Looking forward to tomorrow's three epic rugby matches.
80mins: Blues strip the ball but knock it on. One last chance for the Reds as the hooter sounds.
79mins: Ioane is offside so Reds penalty.
79mins: Akira Ioane somehow ends up with the ball over the line, but the TMO will take a look. If it is given it is game over, but if not the Reds will have a penalty.
78mins: Blues still yet to feed the scrum as we head into the final minute of the game.
77mins: Blues get a scrum feed in Reds territoy as the clock continues to wind down.
76mins: Rene Ranger makes a break from the restart but loses the ball and now the Reds on the attack.
75mins: Perofeta converts his own try. Blues lead by five again.
74mins: TRY BLUES: Stephen Perofeta on debut scores the late try. Akira Ioane makes the break and puts Melani Nanai who makes a big run, but he is pulled short of the line and Perofeta picks the ball up and goes over with ease.
73mins: But anotehr shocking handling error and the Blues have the ball. But they are a long way from where they want to be.
72mins: Reds will the ball inside Blues teritory.
70mins: Blues five metres from the line, but they give the ball away via penalty and the Reds will look to clear the ball.
69mins: Reds have a scrum inide Blues territory after the ball goes dead... But hang on the referee says it touched a Reds player which means scrum to the Blues five from the line.
67mins: The ball is grounded on the touch in goal line so no try. 22 metres drop out.
66mins: Reds look good with the ball but then the Blues steal the ball and Rene Ranger attack. He dives over in the corner, but it is unclear if he scored. The onfield call is try.
65mins: The Reds as back in front after Quade Cooper lands the conversion from the sideline.
64mins: TRY REDS: Taniela Tupou has his second. Gets the ball close and uses all his power and goes low to power over the line. Tie game.
63mins: Blues go to clear from the restart and their kick is charged down and the Reds are close to the line.
62mins: The conversion is over and the Blues lead by five in Samoa.
61mins: TRY BLUES: They Blues make something out of nothing. They attack down the right wing and Jordan Trainoroffloads to Sam Nock who finds Gerard Cowley-Tuioti who scores near the posts.
60mins: Crazy scenes as a drop fest takes place. The Blues drop it and the Reds counter and eventually drop it. The Blues then clear and the Reds do the same.
59mins: Blues penalty and they kick the ball into touch. They will have a lineout 10 metres from the tryline.
But the Reds steal the ball and clear it quickly.
58mins: Blues scrum which is about to reset again. Blues need to hold onto the ball as they have had little ball in the second.
55mins: Great defence by the Blues as they force the away side into touch, but just as Scott Higginbotham is thrown into touch, he throws it at the Blues player so it will be a Reds throw.
54mins: Another poor error by the Blues as another player makes a silly mistake knocking the ball forward. Reds scrum.
53mins: Reds lead for the first time in this match. 22-20.
52mins: TRY REDS: We have a game on our hands. Adam Korczyk drives over the line, near the posts to tie it up. Reds will have a chance to take the lead.
51mins: The Reds go over but are held up. Another five-metre scrum to the Reds.
50mins: Free kick from the scrum, and the Reds take a quick tap. Only metres from the line.
48mins: George Smith comes up with the veteran play. He grabs Jordan Trainor and pushes him back in goal forcing a five-metre scrum. And finally, the crowd is being vocal.
47mins: Blues make a mistake in Reds territory and it will be a scrum to the Reds. Very scrappy poor start to the second half by both teams to be fair.
45mins: PENALTY GOAL REDS: Five point game in Samoa as Cooper kicks the penalty goal.
44mins: Reds still with a penalty advantage inside the Blues 22. Eventually the referee brings the play back which is right in front of the posts.
42mins: Blues spill the ball near halfway and the Reds have the scrum. They make a break and they are inside the Blues 22.
41mins: Reds attack down the blindside and they drop the ball and the Blues get possession.
40mins: The second half is underway in Samoa. Jordan Trainor is out making his debut for the Blues.
HALFTIME: After a fast start, the game has turned quite scrapy. Blues leading 20-12 at the break.
39mins: PENALTY GOAL BLUES: The kick is over and the Blues lead by 8.
38mins: Blues win a penalty and they will kick for goal. About 50 metres out.
37mins: Reds turn the ball over. But the Blues get it back very quickly.
35mins: Blues scrum just inside the Reds 22.
33mins: Quade Cooper lands the conversion. 17-12 Blues.
32mins: TRY REDS: Andrew Ready has gone over. His first of the season. Simple try by getting the ball at the back of the maul and he drives over.
31mins: Reds with the ball inside the Blues 22. They eventually in a penalty and they kick for touch.
29mins: Another missed conversion by Francis.
28mins: TRY BLUES: Kara Pryor scores from the lineout. He gets the ball and goes straight through the middle and scores.
27mins: Blues win a penalty and will kick for touch instead of going for goal.
26mins: Piers Francis is over... Just kidding as once again the last pass is forward. TJ Faiane is put into a massive hole and as he gets close to the line, he throws it out wide, but the pass was forward.
25mins: The Blues put pressure on the Reds by kicking the ball perfectly in-goal. Eto Nabuli clears the ball with a great kick. Much better than what Quade Cooper has produced in this match.
23mins: Piers Francis drops the ball cold after making the catch, so it will be a Reds scrum in Blues territory.
22mins: The Reds turn the ball over, and kick it away, handing possession right back to the Blues who are quickly inside the Reds 22.
20mins: Reds win a free kick inside their half and take the tap. They then boot it away and the ball goes dead, so it will be a scrum to the Blues just outside the Reds 22.
19mins: It is very hot and humid in Apia. So both teams are stopping for a drinks break.
18mins: The Blues charge down Quade Cooper's kick but luckily the Reds get back to the ball first and Cooper kicks it into touch.
16mins: Another turnover by the Blues from the kickoff. Piers Francis stabs the kick through for Declan O’Donnell but the ball bounces dead. They are playing with very short in goals for this match.
14mins: TRY REDS: New Zealander Taniela Tupou goes over for the try. The young prop gets the ball close and powers his way over for his second try of the season.
13mins:Reds just win the scrum and they look to attack again.
12mins: The Reds go close trying to maul over the line, but Andrew Ready falls short. Two plays later Scott Higginbotham goes over but is heled up.
11mins: Another penalty to the Reds just outside the Blues 22. Big loss for the Reds as captain Samu Kerevi heads off the park with a lower leg injury.
10mins: Reds finally have the ball, but they are making no ground. They drop the ball, but the Blues are caught offside.
8mins: The conversion attempt just goes wide.
7mins: TRY BLUES: Rieko Ioane is in for the Blues second. They attack down the left wing and Quade Cooper is left in no man's land. Kara Pryor starts with the big run and he finds Rene Ranger, who gives to Ioane.
5mins: The Blues have the ball again and they attack down the left wing. Next play they chip the ball over the top of the Reds defence and the ball bounces into touch.
4mins: Francis has his kicking boots in Samoa as he lands the conversion.
3mins: TRY BLUES: Rene Ranger has the first five-pointer of the match. The Blues steal the ball from the scrum, and five plays later, Ranger boogies his way past the defence to score the try.
2mins: The Blues are in..... No, they are not! After 13 phases the Blues spread the ball to the right wing and Piers Francis throws a ball over the top to Melani Nanai who is in, but the pass was forward.
1mins: Blues turn the ball over from the kickoff and the Reds are under early pressure.
KICKOFF: We are underway in Samoa. The Blues get the match started.
7:34 pm: Blues are out on the park. Small crowd at Apia for the match.
7:33 pm: The Reds are the first team out on the field.
7:31 pm: The Blues are resting a number of players for tonights' game as they face the Lions on Wednesday. This is the first ever Super Rugby match in Samoa. Should be a cracking clash.
Hello and welcome to live updates of the Blues hosting the Reds at Apia Park in Apia, Samoa.
We bring you live streaming written commentary, video highlights (be sure to refresh your browser) and all the action. VIDEO will be available as soon as the final whistle goes.
Commentary will start from around 7:30 pm (NZT). In the meantime check out the video above of Sonny Bill Williams' daughter accidently swears while counting to five in Te Reo Māori.
Lineups
Blues
1. Alex Hodgman, 2. James Parsons (c), 3. Sione Mafileo, 4. Patrick Tuipulotu, 5. Gerard Cowley-Tuioti, 6. Jimmy Tupou, 7. Kara Pryor, 8. Steven Luatua, 9. Sam Nock, 10. Piers Francis, 11. Rieko Ioane, 12. TJ Faiane, 13. Rene Ranger, 14. Declan O’Donnell, 15. Melani Nanai
Reserves: 16. 16. Hame Faiva, 17. Sam Prattley, 18. Ofa Tu’ungafasi, 19. Akira Ioane, 20. Murphy Taramai, 21. Billy Guyton, 22. Stephen Perofeta, 23. Jordan Trainor
Reds
1. Sef Fa’agase, 2. Andrew Ready, 3. Taniela Tupou, 4. Izack Rodda, 5. Lukhan Tui, 6. Hendrik Tui, 7. George Smith, 8. Scott Higginbotham, 9. James Tuttle, 10. Quade Cooper, 11. Eto Nabuli, 12. Duncan Paia’aua, 13. Samu Kerevi (c), 14. Chris Kuridrani, 15. Karmichael Hunt
Reserves: 16. Alex Mafi, 17. Kirwan Sanday, 18. Sam Talakai, 19. Kane Douglas, 20. Adam Korczyk, 21. Caleb Timu, 22. Nick Frisby, 23. Jake McIntyre
Match facts and stats
Referee: Ben O’Keeffe
Assistants: Will Houston and Angus Mabey
TMO: Shane McDermott
The Blues are unbeaten in their last two games against the Reds (W1, D1), this after enduring their worst losing streak against the Queensland side immediately before that run (four consecutive defeats).
The Blues will be hosting the Reds for the first time since 2014; the Auckland based side have lost just two of their nine Super Rugby matches at home to the Reds (W6, D1).
The Blues have won their last 11 designated home games against sides from outside of New Zealand, including six wins against Australian opposition in that run.
The Reds won their last away game and now have the opportunity to win consecutive away matches for the first time since winning three on the bounce in 2013, a run that included two wins against New Zealand opposition.
The Queenslanders have scored 4+ tries in four of their last five matches, more than they had done in their previous 24 games (three times).
Past meetings
Head to head: Played 21, Blues 9, Reds 10, draws 2
In Samoa: This is the first match between the Blues and Reds in Samoa
Last time played: Reds 25 drew Blues 25, March 19, 2016
Last time in Auckland: Blues 44 def Reds 14, May 2, 2014
Head-to-head: Blues - $1.16 Reds - $5.10
Pre-match banter - Tana Umaga makes big changes for Blues team to play Reds in Apia
Sonny Bill Williams is the latest to be admitted to the All Blacks casualty ward after being omitted from the historic clash against the Reds in Apia on Friday.
Unable to recover from the knee injury that forced him off in last week's 16-16 draw with the Chiefs, he joins Charlie Faumuina on the sidelines who has tonsillitis.
Coach Tana Umaga has also opted to rest Augustine Pulu, Blake Gibson, Matt Duffie and George Moala.
However, it's not all doom and gloom for the Blues who will showcase their fit All Blacks including Patrick Tuipulotu, the in-form Steven Luatua and rising star Rieko Ioane.
Exciting midfielder Rene Ranger and captain James Parsons will also start, while prop Ofa Tu'ungafasi will come off the bench in Samoa's first-ever Super Rugby match.
Loose forward Jimmy Tupou is another returning from injury, after a hamstring tear kept him sidelined him for half the season.
Umaga said playing a home game in Apia was a special occasion.
"We have a significant number of our club who have heritage in Samoa, including myself, and it's a privilege for so many of our team to return home to play in front of friends and family," he said.
Sione Mafileo and a returning Alex Hodgman have been rewarded for their excellent form, joining Parsons, Tupou, Luatua and Kara Pryor in an exciting and mobile loose forward combination.
Youthful Northland pivot Sam Nock makes his first start at halfback to spark a backline where Ioane - with nine tries this year - forms part of a dangerous back three alongside Melani Nanai and Declan O'Donnell.
