Crusaders hunting for home comforts
The Crusaders can plunge Christchurch into the eye of the Super Rugby storm during the next five weekends.
One competition point against the Highlanders at ‘‘Wyatt Crockett Stadium’’ on Friday night should be enough to catapult the Crusaders out of reach of their nearest rivals, the Hurricanes, and ensure the Garden City is the talk of the Sanzaar competition for as long as the home team remains alive during the sudden-death series which starts with a quarterfinal on July 21.
A defeat wouldn’t be a great drama for the title holders, because they will still remain at the top of the log with a roundrobin game against the Blues in Christchurch to be played.
But anyone saying that to coach Scott Robertson or captain Sam Whitelock had best have some bruisers to call in as backup: gabbling such a theory could result in a thick ear.
The Crusaders are feverish to zap the Highlanders, who are currently placed sixth, and that is that.
Victories breed confidence, and given this team is playing together for the first time since they beat the Chiefs 34-20 in Hamilton on June 2, they will be desperate to build rhythm and cohesion so close to the finals.
‘‘It’s really important to get momentum,’’ Robertson said.
‘‘We understand their (the Highlanders) predicament, and we know they are coming. Every time we play a derby game it’s tough, but this one is special for a lot of reasons.’’
Loosehead prop Crockett is being lobbed into that ‘‘special’’ bracket.
He will make his 200th Super Rugby appearance for the Crusaders when he leaves the bench, and to celebrate the achievement the club have named the stadium in his honour for this fixture. Crockett’s team-mates would be horrified to mark the occasion with a loss, and will be making all sorts of promises to not spoil the party. Yet, as history proves, this means nothing.
It’s not uncommon for teams to vow they will win a game for a bloke bringing up a memorable milestone, only to stumble.
The Crusaders have won their last 10 games, with the Highlanders inflicting the most recent loss – a 25-17 victory for the southerners in Dunedin on March 17.
‘‘It obviously did hurt that night,’’ Robertson conceded.
‘‘They performed really well, the Highlanders. They are good mates for a lot of the boys, and coaching group. There is a lot on it for a lot of reasons.’’
Even if Highlanders coach Aaron Mauger hadn’t worked closely with Robertson during their days at Canterbury, he would still know how the Crusaders, who had not lost at home in almost two years, are going to try and inflict damage.
The Crusaders will field a forward pack loaded-up with hardened brawlers and welcoming back All Blacks captain Kieran Read, who will start at No 8, adds more power under the bonnet.
Once the softening-up has been done, Richie Mo’unga will be charged with organising the backline strikes.
Read, making his comeback from spinal surgery, may be replaced at halftime by Jordan Taufua or a reshuffle could result in lock Scott Barrett being switched to blindside flanker.
It depends on how much juice Read has left in his fuel pot.
‘‘We have got a plan around him (Read),’’ Robertson said. ‘‘We are looking to get him to halftime and see how he is. Jordie (Taufua) is going to have managed time as well. ‘‘But we wanted him (Read) to have a good clear week. Experience is not going to be lacking for him, with nearly 300 games under his belt.’’