Crusaders outclass Blues to clinch inaugural Super Rugby Pacific title
The Crusaders have done it again.
For the sixth time in as many seasons, Scott Robertson’s side have won silverware, this time claiming the inaugural Super Rugby Pacific title after beating the Blues 21-7 in front of a sold-out Eden Park in Auckland.
As formidable an outfit the Crusaders are, this went against the script, which read that the Blues would deliver their expectant fans with a fifth title on the back of a standout campaign.
Earlier this year, they’d beaten the Crusaders to snap an 18-year winless drought in Christchurch during a record-breaking 15-match unbeaten run to position themselves at the summit of the competition standings at the end of the regular season.
Led by Beauden Barrett and supported by an all-star cast of teammates, many believed that the Blues could take advantage of that momentum and back-up last year’s Super Rugby Trans-Tasman success by toppling the Crusaders in what was the most-anticipated Super Rugby final in recent memory.
It wasn’t to be, though.
Falling short at the final hurdle, Leon MacDonald’s men learned why the Crusaders have established themselves as the greatest team in the history of the competition, and why they have won almost every title available to them since 2017.
Going into the final, the visitors flew under the radar compared of the Blues, but they gave everyone a stern reminder as to why the can never be taken lightly right from the get-go.
Withstanding a barrage of pressure early on as Crusaders dominated possession and territory, the Blues were forced them to produce multiple try-saving tackles inside the first quarter of an hour.
A three-man effort was enough to deny Leicester Fainga’anuku in the first genuine try-scoring chance of the encounter, and that was followed by a blinder of a Mark Telea tackle on Codie Taylor, with both efforts forcing the Crusaders into touch.
Tremendous scrambling defence by Finlay Christie then saw Fainga’anuku held up over the line, but the Crusaders were already ahead by that point after Richie Mo’unga calmly slotted a mid-range drop goal.
That level-headed three-pointer came after Mo’unga showcased his attacking brilliance with a searing run upfield from inside his own 22 that should have been capitalised, only for a Taylor spillage to nullify any threat the Crusaders posed.
Regardless, the Blues would have been satisfied to have trailed by only three points by the 20-minute mark considering the intensity of the Crusaders’ attack, which would have broken many other defences.
What the hosts can’t have been happy with, however, was their accuracy at the set piece, as the Crusaders – spearheaded by captain Scott Barrett – pinched, in total, 10 of the opposition’s 19 throws, disrupting any continuity the Blues attempted to build.
In the end, that was enough for the Crusaders to yield points, firstly through the boot of Mo’unga, who landed his first penalty attempt of the night, before Bryn Hall snuck over from close range right on the stroke of half-time.
Down 13-0 at the break – and fortunate that the officials had enough common sense to not send Nepo Laulala to the sin bin for what could have been deemed a dangerous tackle (the same could also be applied to Jack Goodhue) – the Blues needed to be the next team to strike.
That wasn’t the case, though, as the Crusaders rolled their way up the park through some impressive grunt work by their forwards – a continuation of their work in the first half – to earn their side a penalty after just five minutes.
Mo’unga duly converted that ill-discipline points, but that was the last point that the Crusaders really exemplified any sort of dominance in the fixture as disciplinary issues of their own.
As those issues started to creep into their game, the Blues began to threaten more and more with ball in hand, to the point where they started to entrench themselves inside the Crusaders’ half to an extent they hadn’t throughout the course of the first half.
That culminated in a try to Christie, who took full advantage of some sloppy scrum work by the Crusaders inside their own half to dot down in the same spot that his opposite Hall had scored 20 minutes earlier.
With their tails up and the Eden Park faithful rallying behind their side, the Blues looked more comfortable in their play while the Crusaders appeared continually rattled.
An uptake in significant plays, such as the explosive breaks by Hoskins Sotutu and Dalton Papalii, put the Crusaders on the back foot by the Blues, leading to uncharacteristic errors by the serial title-winners as the match entered its final quarter.
Those nerves were compounded when Mo’unga failed to drain a long-range attempt on goal from a scrum penalty won by Tamaiti Williams, but only for a brief period.
Instead, they illustrated their ability to force the Blues backwards, suck a turnover or error out of them, or simply defend with tremendous effort to keep the hosts at arm’s length in the game’s closing stages.
Ultimately, it were those traits that paved the way for Sevu Reece’s title-sealing try with only a handful of minutes to play.
As hoards of Blues fans left with time still on the clock, the Crusaders bench reacted with jubilation as their side outmuscled, outsmarted and outclassed their counterparts.
Crusaders 21 (Tries to Bryn Hall and Sevu Reece; conversion, 2 penalties and drop goal to Richie Mo’unga)
Blues 7 (Try to Finlay Christie; conversion to Stephen Perofeta)
Comments on RugbyPass
Brayden Iose and Peter Lakai are very exciting Super Rugby players but are too short and too light to ever be a Test 8 vs South Africa, France, Ireland, and England, Lakai could potentially be a Test player at 7 if he is allowed to focus on 7 for Hurricanes.
5 Go to commentsPencils “Thomas du Toit” into possible 2027 Bok squad.
1 Go to commentsDon’t see why Harrison makes the bench. Jones can play at 10 if needed, and there is a good case for starting her there to begin with if testing combinations. That would leave room for Sing on the bench
1 Go to commentsWhat a load of old bull!
1 Go to commentsOf the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.
29 Go to commentsIrish Rugby CEO be texting Andy Farrell “Andy, i found our next Kiwi Irishman”
5 Go to commentsI certainly don’t miss drinking beers at 8am in the morning watching rugby games being played in NZ.
1 Go to commentsThis looks like a damage limitation exercise for Wales, keeping back some of their more effective players for the last 20/25 minutes to try and counter England’s fresh legs so the Red Roses don’t rack up a big score.
1 Go to commentsVery unlikely the Bulls will beat Leinster in Dublin. It would be different in Pretoria.
1 Go to commentsI think it is a dangerous path to go down to ban a player for the same period that a player they injured takes to recover. Players would be afraid to tackle anyone. I once tackled my best friend at school in a practice match and sprained his ankle. I paid for it by having to play fly-half instead of full-back for the rest of that season’s fixtures.
5 Go to commentsJust such a genuine good bloke…and probably the best all round player in his generation. Good guys do come first sometimes and he handled the W.Cup loss with great attitude.
2 Go to commentsWord in France is that he’s on the radar of a few Top14 clubs.
5 Go to commentsGet blocking Travis, this guy has styles and he’s gonna make a swift impact…!
1 Go to commentsWhat remorse? She claimed that her dangerous tackle wasn’t worthy of a red! She should be compensating the injured player for loss of earnings at the minimum. Her ban should include the recovery time of the injured player as well as the paltry 3 match ban.
5 Go to commentsArdie is a legend. Finished and klaar. Two things: “Yeah, yeah, I have had a few conversations with Razor just around feedback on my game and what I am doing well, what I need to improve on or work-ons. It’s kind of been minimal, mate, but it’s all that I need over here in terms of how to be better, how to get better and what I am doing well.” I hope he’s downplaying it - and that it’s not that “minimal”. The amount of communication and behind the scenes preparation the Bok coaches put into players - Rassie and co would be all over Ardie and being clear on what is expected of him. This stands out for me as something teams should really be looking at in terms of the boks success from a coaching point of view. And was surprised by the comment - “minimal”. In terms of the “debate” around Ireland and South Africa. Nice one Ardie. Indeed. There’s no debate.
2 Go to commentsThere’s a bit of depth there but realistically Australian players have a long way to go to now catch up. The game is moving on fast and Australia are falling behind. Australian sides still don’t priories the breakdown like they should, it’s a non-negotiable if you want to compete on the international stage. That goes for forwards and backs. The Australian team could have a back row that could make a difference but the problem is they don’t have a tight five that can do the business. Tupou is limited in defence, overweight and unfit and the locks are a long way from international standard. Frost is soft and Salakai-Loto is too small so that means they need a Valentini at 8 who has to do the hard graft so limits the effectiveness of the backrow. Schmidt really needs to get a hard working, tough tight 5 if he wants to get this team firing.
3 Go to commentsSorry Morgan you must have been the “go to for a quote” ex player this week. Its rnd 6 and there is plenty of time to cement a starting 15 and finishing 8 so I have no such concerns.
2 Go to commentsGreat read. I wish you had done this article on the ROAR.
2 Go to commentsThe current AB coaching team is basically the Crusaders so it smacks of wanting their familiar leaders around. This is not a good look for the future of the ABs or the younger players in Super working their way up the player ladder. Razor is touted as innovative, forward looking but his early moves look like insecurity and insular, provincial thinking. He is the AB's coach not the Golden Oldies.
10 Go to commentsSimple reason for wanting him back. Robertson wants him as captain. Otherwise he wouldn’t be bothering chasing him. Not enough reason to come back just to mentor.
10 Go to comments