Pressure turned Rebels into rubble

The Highlanders turned up the heat in the second half as they scored 31 unanswered points to secure a 43-12 hammering of the Rebels in Invercargill on Friday.

The seven-tries-to-none win, which saw the Highlanders return to the top of the Super Rugby standings, was aided by a hat-trick from All Black flank Adam Thomson.

Thomson, who returned to the Highlanders starting line-up after a week off, said a "good chat" at half-time helped the home to the convincing win.

The first half was a tight affair - with four James O'Connor penalties matched by tries from Ben Smith and Thomson, along with a Chris Noakes conversion.

However, five second-half tries saw the Highlanders race well clear.

"We just talked [at half-time] about building pressure," Thomson said.

"In the first half ill-discipline and free points kept them in the game, but things started coming right in the second half and we started finding holes and finished opportunities," he added.

"We couldn't kick any goals, but we scored tries.

"Our backs are starting to gel well, we've got some strikers out there who are scoring tries.

"I think the Highlanders play best when we build phases and wait for things to open up and not force too many passes.

"Having a bit more patience and building the game, cutting those silly turnovers out and finishing off made all the difference."

He also spoke of last week's upset to the Brumbies, which saw them slip out of first place on the standings.

"We were disappointed last week in Canberra, we got beaten at the breakdown - which is usually one of our strengths.

"It's good to close it out for a convincing win rather than scratching home by the odd point."