Three Crusaders stars have played their final match for the Super Rugby Aotearoa champions
The Crusaders will need to do some further recruitment ahead of next season with three of their players set to depart the franchise.
Loose forwards Whetukamokamo Douglas, Tom Sanders and wing Manasa Mataele have all played their final games for the team, with the trio heading offshore for 2022.
Mataele – who earlier this week was named in the Fiji squad for their upcoming two-match series with the All Blacks – is rumoured to be heading to the Western Force in Australia.
The Force have already announced that four up-and-coming Brumbies players will head west for next season with Reesjan Pasitoa, Bayley Kuenzle, Reece Tapine and Issak Fines-Leleiwasa all committing to the Australian team on two-year deals. They are, however, losing three Argentinian stars with Tomas Lezana, Tomas Cubelli and Domingo Miotti all heading to Europe.
Mataele burst onto the scene for the Crusaders in 2017 and was in the process of establishing himself as a starter for the team in 2019 when a ruptured ACL opened the door for Sevu Reece. Mataele has struggled for minutes since, mainly having to accept smaller roles off the bench.
27-year-old Sanders, meanwhile, is heading to Japan where he will become the latest New Zealand loose forward to feature in the Top League.
Sanders started his Super Rugby career with the Chiefs back in 2016 before shifting south to the Crusaders two years later. A barnstorming performance for the South Island in last year’s North v South exhibition match had some speculating that the Cantabrian could be due for an All Blacks call-up but nothing eventuated last year.
With the likes of Cullen Grace and Ethan Blackadder typically being preferred to him at the Crusaders throughout 2021, now is a sensible time for Sanders to head offshore.
Maori All Blacks No 8 Whetukamokamo Douglas is the longest-serving of the trio, having first linked up with the Crusaders in 2017. Douglas’ destination is yet to be confirmed but the powerful loose forward spent a season with Rainbow Cup finalists Benetton in recent years and could be looking to make a return to Europe.
The Crusaders have already announced one big-name signing for 2021, bringing Argentina captain Pablo Matera into the mix.
Scott Robertson and his fellow coaches brought just four new players into the squad at the start of the season but already it looks like recruitment will need to be upped for the campaign ahead.
Crusaders Under 20s loose forward and captain Anton Segner will be odds-on to make his Super Rugby debut next year while there are always plenty of talented outside backs floating around the country.
The Crusaders finished third in this year’s Super Rugby Trans-Tasman competition due to their inferior points differential relative to the Blues and Highlanders but were crowned Aotearoa champions for the second year running.
Comments on RugbyPass
One of the best the Boks have ever produced. PSDT has an engine that goes non-stop for the full 80 min.
4 Go to commentsThe real deal.
4 Go to commentsIt’s been said that Nienaber will head back to SA too before next World Cup , hoarding all the amazing IP gained in Irish system … get a grip … Irish system needs to Milk the likes of Barrett . First time a leading all Black in his prime has gone to Ireland for any period of time . Enjoy it .
20 Go to comments20 min RC is the only good solution of a bunch of bad solutions. Ridiculous that it has taken this long and caused so many uneven contests. In general these are all very good changes - one is surprised that NH brokers were able to see sense at long last.
7 Go to comments“While a red card will mean a temporary team disadvantage, the replacement system will focus punishment on the offending player instead of disrupting the game itself.” This might work for amateur rugby, where players just want to be on the pitch for as long as possible, but hopefully we’ve got to a point where top level professionals care about the success of their team much more than about whether they personally are on the pitch or not.
7 Go to commentsa lot of focus on the targeting of south africa, but aspects of this are positive. The croc roll; the offside law; and time limits on set pieces are all good. calling for a mark off kick offs is baffling, but I guess we’ll see how it plays out in practice
24 Go to commentsSpeeding the game up is great, but I think we will find that the increase in viewership this year mostly comes down to the competition being more competitive…the fall of the Crusaders has been a boon for viewership. This should be at the heart of super rugby changes - how to make the comp more even
23 Go to commentsThe fact that the press were largely to blame for his taking a break is nothing short of disgusting. He’s made a few mistakes but difficult to name a player of any substance who gives it a full go hasn’t also made mistakes? On behalf of a large number of Bokke fans, bring back Farrell !!!!!
1 Go to commentsPSTD is a fantastic flanker. He could benefit from a bit of self-promotion / flair and he is not quite the danger man that Ardie is. That said, he is my 1st pick to build a backrow around. His speed and hustle made up for Duane who got quite a bit slower at the 8.
4 Go to commentssurprised, disco lights haven't been banned by world rugby board
24 Go to commentsToo many changes. Too often. I’m tired of this WR administration. How do we vote these fockers out? Bill needs to go.
24 Go to commentsDu Toit, 2 time W.Cup winner yet rarely mentioned a “Great “…if one looks back on his stellar carrier perhaps someone will one day elevate him to “Richie” status…a quiet, polite yet devastating loose forward that knew action speaks louder than words..
4 Go to commentsI like the offside rule, but this won't affect my team because all their kicks gets chased and that putts everyone on side. Lekker manne!
24 Go to comments20 minute Red Card is untenable. If you don’t punish the whole team, coaches won’t be sufficently incentivised to pick players with, or coach better tackle technique.
7 Go to commentsI can only think of One time ever a team has opted for a scrum from a free kick… Why the law change I wonder
24 Go to commentsYeah, its not going to work. But we see you World Rugby.
24 Go to commentsLove the reaction after last 2 W.Cups re rule changes…maybe good for more for more of a “ league” type running game( which I personally don’t like) but seems Rassie is definitely in ther heads…
24 Go to commentsGreat. More unwanted changes. Because these always work out well.
24 Go to commentsI’m sure South Africa’s opponents will rejoice at World Rugby minimising one of the Boks’ most potent weapons, but you just know Rassie is cooking something up with free-kicks that no-one else has thought of. Let them play checkers. Rassie’s playing chess. 😂
24 Go to commentsAfter a fairly simple Pac4, the BFs will find out a lot about themselves in September when they face the rampaging RedRoses at Twickenham in front of a record crowd. After that they will face them again in Canada in WXV1. They also have France to contend with. Will be interesting to see what Australia have to offer with Jo Yapp at the helm.
1 Go to comments