Patrick Tuipulotu delivers blunt Blues assessment after Crusaders defeat

Blues captain Patrick Tuipulotu has delivered a brutal assessment of the team’s performance against the Crusaders in Christchurch, suggesting they didn’t look like a team that deserves to be in the finals after losing 36-20 in the New Zealand derby.

The Blues entered round 13 as the second-ranked side on the Super Rugby Pacific standings, with a chance to move into top spot on the live ladder. But instead, Vern Cotter’s side dropped down to third after both matches on Friday night.

George Bower and Jamie Hannah crossed for one try each as the Crusaders took a 12-3 lead during the first term, but the Blues hit back with two of their own just before the break. AJ Lam and Sam Nock got on the scoresheet, as the visitors took a one-point lead into the sheds.

The Crusaders had looked fairly comfortable for the majority of the first half, playing with confidence and winning both the possession and territory battles. But the Blues made their chances count, with Lam scoring a particularly impressive counter-attack effort.

But the second half was practically all one-way traffic, with the Crusaders dominating, holding on for the win after going down to 13 men at one stage. The Blues will face the top two sides in the competition before the playoffs, starting with the Hurricanes in Auckland next weekend.

“With that sort of performance, I don’t think we deserve to be in finals,” Tuipulotu said post-game on Sky Sport.

“It’s a hard ask but we have it in us.”

Halfback Noah Hotham linked up with Rivez Reihana for a Crusaders try in the 44^th minute, as the hosts regained the lead. Kyle Preston and Sevu Reece made their mark soon after, while Leicester Fainga’anuku continued to produce game-defining plays at openside.

Replacement Kurtis MacDonald was shown a red card after a challenge in the air with Perofeta, before Jack Saxton was sent to the sin bin. The Blues had a two-man advantage and made the most of it immediately through Hoskins Sotutu.

Sotutu crashed over and Beauden Barrett added the extras, reducing the deficit to 11 with just 10 minutes remaining. But the Blues were penalised after the restart, and the Crusaders controlled the ball during the dying stages.

“Heading into half-time, got some confidence back with our game but as soon as we lost discipline or had a few errors, they certainly made us pay and we ended up back on our line,” Tuipulotu reflected.

“Pretty frustrating.

“For the whole 80 they capitalised on our mistakes. Sort of let slip in terms of handling, penalties, lineout, especially set-piece; crucial areas we we’re usually pretty good.

“The Crusaders, they pride themselves on that set-piece battle and then around the park, they won the race.”