Thorne: Playing away isn't much of a factor these days

Former All Black captain Rueben Thorne reckons the prospect of playing a Super Rugby playoff isn’t as hard as it was in the old days.

And he’d know. The durable flanker played in all seven of the Crusaders’ grand final wins, across 10 seasons. Speaking specifically about the Highlanders’ trip to AMI Stadium in Christchurch, Thorne told Scotty Stevenson and Mils Muliaina on the Rugby Pass Podcast:

“I think most teams would prefer to be playing their finals at home…but in saying that, I think teams these days are much better at playing away as well. The Highlanders will be pretty comfortable coming up here and putting in a strong performance. I know the Crusaders have played away and won, so while it is a factor, I don’t think it’s enough of one to influence the outcome.”

Thorne does have a valid point, the last two games between the Crusaders and Highlanders have had very similar finishes despite being played in both teams’ home grounds.

That’ll be cold comfort to the Highlanders though, both of those games were heartbreaking losses.

Thorne also opened up about how former Crusaders coach Robbie Deans would get the team motivated every season, saying he was ‘a master at pushing the right buttons.’

Listen to the whole chat with Reuben Thorne, as well as a full break down on the Super Rugby playoffs on The Rugby Pass Podcast:

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