Razor ready for old foes

Scott Robertson’s mind drifts back to a foul old night in Australia’s capital 22 years ago when he thinks of Crusaders-brumbies clashes.

Rain and a bitterly cold breeze whipped through the Canberra stadium on the night of the 2000 Super Rugby final, a night head coach Robertson was donning the No 7 jersey for the red-and-blacks.

It was the first of three finals contested between the teams between 2000 and 2004, and won 20-19 by the Crusaders as they clinched the first of two threepeats in the franchise’s history.

Brutal, but well organised and smart. That’s what the Brumbies team of the early 2000s was known for, and what Robertson sees when he looks at this year’s edition of the most successful Australian franchise with an eye on plotting their demise in Canberra tomorrow night.

‘‘I remember [Stirling] Mortlock missed a couple [of kicks] out in front, and I remember [Andrew Mehrtens] turning around and saying ‘you sure you want to take another one?’,’’ Robertson said of the 2000 final.

‘‘The context of the game, how important it was ... they had an Australian team, and we had an All Black-laden team as well. You just reflect on those times, it’s personal in your career, and Crusaders history to make it a hattrick of three in a row.’’

Tomorrow’s match, the 28th between the teams, shapes as essential viewing, and will go a long way to determining where the sides finish in the standings after the regular season.