Mo’unga, Barrett ruled out
Richie Mo’unga and Scott Barrett have been forced to miss the Crusaders’ emotional return to Super Rugby in Sydney tomorrow night.
The pair are not permitted to play in the match at the Sydney Cricket Ground due to All Blacks enforced leave, despite last weekend’s fixture against the Highlanders in Dunedin being cancelled in the aftermath of the Christchurch terrorist attack.
Crusaders coach Scott Robertson confirmed the canned fixture did not reset their streak of played games because they trained with the team last week. The agreement with New Zealand Rugby is that the players sit out the week entirely.
‘‘The five weeks, or six, it can be dependant on injuries, [consecutive games rule] they trained all week but didn’t get to play. There’s a rule that you had to have a week out of the environment and Scotty and Richie have had that this week.’’
Mo’unga has been replaced by one-cap All Black Brett Cameron at first-five eighth, while Quinten Strange replaces Barrett in what promises to be an emotionally charged fixture across the ditch.
Captain Sam Whitelock, who was last week due to make his first appearance of the season after an extended break, confirmed they would honour the victims of the mosque attacks before the game kicks off.
‘‘We’re going to get together with the Waratahs before the kickoff. It’s going to be pretty cool. They’re hurting just like we are. To do it together, to show that everyone is united is going to be pretty awesome.’’
Having not held their weekly media session on Monday, Whitelock and Robertson fronted media at Christchurch Airport yesterday before flying to Sydney.
The Christchurch-based franchise has been in the spotlight since last Friday’s shootings in the Garden City due to their name, with some people calling for them to ditch the Crusaders name.
The Crusades, a series of conflicts between Christians and Muslims in the Mediterranean which started about a 1000 years ago, are behind the calls for change.
Robertson, Whitelock and All Blacks captain Kieran Read appeared in a video published on the team’s social media channels earlier in the week, saying it was too soon to make any decisions.
They reiterated their view yesterday, when fans were spotted stopping some Crusaders at the airport and taking selfies with them. ‘‘We understand and are aware of the situation. But for us, what we stand for, is we’re really good people and we behave and we’re strong role models and we play rugby and we’re a rugby club,’’ Robertson said.
‘‘I’m hearing from the people that have got a lot of high [emotional intelligence] that probably the time for the conversation is not right now. If you make a call now with the way everyone is feeling . . . it isn’t the right thing.’’
Whitelock and Robertson both expressed a desire to return to the field and do the province proud tomorrow, something some fans debating the name change pointed out they did in the aftermath of the 2011 Christchurch earthquake.
‘‘If we can go out there and perform, and show everyone, Christchurch, our region and the country, how we’re feeling, hopefully we put a smile on some people’s faces, even if it is for just 80 minutes of a rugby game. That’s our priority at the moment,’’ Whitelock said.
The SCG has come under scrutiny for the poor condition of its turf after large hunks were ripped up when the Waratahs and Reds played their earlier this month.
About 3000 square metres have been replaced since the farcical scenes, and Robertson said the team had been assured it would be up to scratch. ‘‘We will have a walk over, and will make sure if we need the long sprigs out we’ve got them.’’