Crusaders deny Blues super point with O'Connor game winner

Super Rugby Pacific round ten got underway on Friday evening, where wet conditions in Christchurch had a huge impact on a matchup of two long-time rivals.

Two tries either side of halftime and a late clutch penalty from James O’Connor helped the Crusaders squeeze past the Blues, 25-22 in Christchurch.

The Crusaders have now won seven of their last eight encounters against the Blues, showcasing their recent dominance over the Auckland-based franchise. The victory on Friday evening was their second win over the Blues this season, after a 42-19 victory in round six at Eden Park.

It was a dream start for the Crusaders after a Rieko Ioane obstruction allowed the home side to strike first. A superb touch-finder from Taha Kemara put the Crusaders in a solid position, before All Blacks prop Tamaiti Williams barged his way over the try line close to the touchline. Kemara smartly added the extras from the sideline, giving the Crusaders an early 7-0 lead.

The next 15 minutes of the match were spent mostly in the Crusaders 22, where the Blues forwards rolled up their sleeves and went through the middle to try and get some reward. After a couple of penalties against the scrambling Crusaders defence, Blues lock Josh Beehre powered his way over the line. Beauden Barrett added the extras, bringing the scores level at 7-7 after 24 minutes.

In the minutes leading up to halftime, it was the home side that was on the front foot, working hard to break the Blues’ defence. The Blues were pinged at scrum time multiple times late in the first half after Williams got the better of Blues prop Angus Ta’avao.

The Crusaders had two lineout opportunities close to the line, one stopped illegally by the Blues and the other sacked by the Crusaders before in-form midfielder David Havili fired a beautiful looping pass to Will Jordan to go in to score under the posts.

HT: 14-7 to the Crusaders.

The second half started like the first, with the Crusaders putting the Blues under pressure in their 22. A smart lineout move from the Crusaders allowed Christian Lio-Willie to find a gap in the Blues maul defence, forcing his way over the line just after half time. Kemara’s conversion attempt just went wide of the right hand post.

The Blues then spent time in the Crusaders 22, using their strong pick and go game to threaten the home side’s defence. Rob Penney’s Crusaders continued their strong defence, stopping the Blues attack time and time again, forcing the Blues forward pack to make error after error in the Crusaders 22.

Blues blindside flanker Anton Segner managed to win a huge turnover for the Blues, as they were then able to power their way over the line with Hoskins Sotutu bouncing to the outside of the Crusaders defence to score five meters from the posts.

Then out of absolutely no where, Sotutu picked up the ball from the base of the ruck and threw an outrageous pass behind the back to AJ Lam, who was able to fend off one defender and score just in from the sideline. Barrett’s sideline conversion just missed the post, keeping the scores level at 19-19.

Replacement Blues prop Mason Tupaea managed to get himself over the Ball in Crusaders territory, winning a cruical penalty. The Blues opted for the three, with Barrett easily knocking over the penalty.

A huge scrum from All Blacks prop Fletcher Newell won the Crusaders a penalty from 30 meters out right in front, before replacement Crusaders playmaker James O’Connor successfully kicked the penalty to level the scores once again.

The final 10 minutes of action was a battle of territory where there were multiple in play kicks from both teams. The Blues crumbled under the pressure with Ioane dropping the ball inside his own half. The resulting scrum was dominated by the Crusaders, giving O’Connor the opportunity to ice the game.

The 63-Test Wallabies veteran was cool, calm and collected in the final moment, slotting the penalty straight down the middle.

FT: 25-22 to the Crusaders.