No sympathy for Crusaders south of Waitaki
Don’t expect the Highlanders to sympathise with the injuryravaged Crusaders ahead of their showdown in Dunedin on Saturday night.
After all, the shoe was firmly on the other foot a year ago, when the Highlanders scrapped their way through the first two months of the 2017 season with a casualty ward bursting at the seams.
The reigning champion Crusaders will be without eight All Blacks – Kieran Read, Joe Moody, Owen Franks, Tim Perry, Israel Dagg, Richie Mo’unga, Ryan Crotty, Sam Whitelock – and flanker Pete Samu when the teams rip into each other under the Forsyth Barr Stadium roof.
That’s a stack of firepower watching from the sidelines. But does it make them vulnerable?
‘‘All teams are vulnerable if you don’t get your defence right, that’s the reality,’’ Highlanders assistant coach Mark Hammett said when asked if he saw chinks in the Crusaders’ armor.
Crotty (concussion), who has been replaced by the experienced Tim Bateman at second-five eighth, and his defensive organisation will surely be missed by the visitors, particularly if the Highlanders can generate enough ball to feed the likes of wing Waisake Naholo, who has ran in eight tries in the past five games between the teams.
However, if anything, the Highlanders are simply expecting the team they lost all three games against last year to turn up hungry for a backlash after their 29-19 defeat to the Hurricanes a week ago.
There’s a few things the Highlanders need to address if they’re going to hand the Crusaders consecutive losses for the first time under second-year coach Scott Robertson, Hammett said.
Tactics, finishing and ball retention.
‘‘I thought we were a little bit rusty against the Stormers [last week]. Good intent, good tempo, but probably tactically we didn’t get it right. So that’s something we’ve focussed on this week.
‘‘And just being prepared to work harder for two, three, four phases. That was certainly one of the review points that came out of the Stormers game.’’
The Highlanders bombed a bunch of tries in their 33-15 win last Friday night, including one under the sticks, where lock Jackson Hemopo coughed up the ball over the chalk.
It didn’t cost them, but a repeat could well burn them in a game the bookies can’t split the teams – both are paying $1.90 to win – in head-to-head betting.
A year after the Highlanders’ injury toll hovered in the double digits and they were digging around for loose forwards, only flanker James Lentjes (shoulder), centre Thomas Umaga-Jensen (shoulder), utility back Richard Buckman (neck) and Dan Pryor (hamstring) were unavailable for this weekend’s match.
In addition to the Crusaders’ injury woes, the Chiefs and Blues have also been struck hard by the injury bug in the early stages of the season.
For Hammett, it all comes down to luck.
‘‘It is a fair question and we asked ourselves that. But nothing came out of the review of last season that showed anything different.
‘‘In a physical contact sport it is simply that – you end up with bad luck,’’ he said.
‘‘In the first eight rounds last year, we were riddled by injury.’’
The Highlanders, who are playing their third consecutive home game to start the season, are expecting a crowd of about 20,000 on Saturday night.
Including last year’s 17-0 quarterfinal win, the Crusaders have won nine of the past 11 games between the teams, and lead the all-time head-to-head stakes 22-10.