Burglars ransacked the home of Chiefs coach Dave Rennie while his side were winning a maiden Super Rugby title in Hamilton, he has revealed.

planetrugby.com

Rennie said his Huntington home was badly damaged when thieves stole a safe holding his wife’s jewellery as the Chiefs cruised to a 36-7 victory over the Sharks at Waikato Stadium, a few kilometres (miles) away.

“The safe was pretty small but getting it out would have been a hell of a job and they did a lot of damage in the process,” he told the Waikato Times.

“It certainly put a dampener on the night.”

Rennie believed he had been deliberately targeted because the burglars knew he would be at Saturday’s game, with star centre Sonny Bill Williams the victim of a similar burglary in May during a match against the Bulls.

“It is concerning,” Rennie told the newspaper. “Unfortunately there are people who prey on these situations.”

Waikato police urged locals to be on the lookout for distinctive jewellery stolen in the burglary, saying it was a way the community could repay the Chiefs’ effort in winning the Super Rugby crown.

“We would like Chiefs fans to become our eyes and ears on the matter,” detective sergeant Neville Ross said.