Crusaders off to Perth to take on the Force
There shouldn’t be too many mad surprises in store for the Crusaders when they play in Perth.
That’s what they hope, anyway. Tomorrow a Crusaders squad, minus those eliminated from consideration because of All Blacks’ duty and injuries, fly to Western Australia’s capital city to prepare to play the Western Force on Saturday night.
This is a fixture in the World Rugby Series, the bold venture started by billionaire Andrew Forrest after the Force got kicked out of Super Rugby last year.
The Crusaders, no strangers to Perth, have played in the city enough to accept not everything runs to the blueprint in the city on the fringe of the vast continent.
In addition to experiencing the odd scrape on the scoreboard, there have also been other moments of insanity: the odd sight of a pitch invader dressed as a banana in 2013 will certainly take some beating.
Crusaders coach Scott Robertson must also inspect a revamped rule book to ensure the Super Rugby champions are not caught unawares by a Force team used to operating under the tweaked regulations.
One of the most interesting law variations to be sanctioned by World Rugby for the WRS is the seven-point power try, which allows the team that scores off a movement launched inside its own 22 to earn maximum points – with the conversion to come. The attacking team is aware it could be in the money because a green light flashes at the top of the goal posts.
The Crusaders will also be able to name 10 reserves, although Robertson said there would be no rolling subs.
‘‘No, not for this game. It hasn’t been sanctioned,’’ he said. ‘‘It’s changing by the day at the moment and they need clearance from World Rugby to be able play them, and they keep trying different laws and rules.
‘‘We will see what happens when we turn up. The majority of it is the same.
As the Super Rugby champions, the Crusaders know the Force will be desperate to knock them over.
Even though Robertson will field a second-string side, a necessity given he has got so many men on national duty or in the injury ward, he accepts the Force won’t care about the names on the team sheet. They just want to bowl over the kings of the competition that rejected them late last year.
Knee injuries suffered by flanker Billy Harmon and wing Jone Macilai during the 42-26 win over the French Barbarians in Christchurch last Friday night will result in Robertson digging deeper into his roster.
The young Crusaders side performed very well against the French, providing the tourists will lessons on how to counterattack from the deep.
The tourists, meanwhile, were extremely impressive with their lineout drives which resulted in three tries. Robertson said the Crusaders expected the rolling mauls. Talking about how to counter them was one thing. Doing it successfully was another.
‘‘You have got to give it to them; that is northern hemisphere, French footy, at its best. It was a great experience for our young guys.’’