Crusaders complete NZ

Kiwi conference leaders win sixth in a row this season and 10th straight against Aussies

The New Zealand conference juggernaut rolls on. The Crusaders made it a 5-0 sweep from New Zealand sides over Australian and South African opposition on the weekend.

They also racked up their 10th straight win over Australian teams and regained the New Zealand conference lead. There was, though, some untidiness, which kept the Waratahs in the Sydney contest.

“We were really good at times. We made a few mistakes in that first spell and they came back,” says Crusaders captain Sam Whitelock. “They got in our faces and we spilled the ball, so we knew we had to pick it up as we knew they had come from behind the week before [against the Rebels].”

The Crusaders’ strong finish earned a bonus point, via a try to replacement hooker Ben Funnell, and saw them leapfrog the Chiefs. But their last 20 minutes were eerily similar to the manner in which the Hurricanes finished against the Reds. And like the Hurricanes, the Crusaders started with intent, intensity and pace.

Left wing George Bridge is no Nemani Nadolo but is a smart, resourceful footballer who invariably takes the right option. He scored the opening try, ate up the metres with his elusive and clever running, and set up Tim Bateman’s second try.

When the Red Sea parted for David Havili off a lineout, it was 12-0 and hope was forlorn for the Waratahs, stretched to breaking point on defence by the offloading and continuity game of the visitors.

But the Waratahs were hauled up by the ubiquitous Michael Hooper, who probably shaded Matt Todd with an all-round, committed display. The Wallaby No 7 scored the Waratahs’ 41 22