Comeback kings strike again
It’s no longer foolish to ask if spectacular comebacks are all part of the Crusaders’ game plan – not after their heart-thumping 33-24 win over the Blues on Friday night.
At AMI Stadium they proved to once again be the Harry Houdini of Super Rugby when they thrashed their way out of a seemingly impossible situation, having trailed by 19 points early in the second half, to rush in tries to Pete Samu, Ben Funnell, Mitchell Hunt and Mitchell Drummond and score a total of 28 unanswered points to stun the Blues.
This, of course, follows the Crusaders having to bounce back from 17 and 21 points deficits in their previous games against the Reds and Highlanders.
What makes the victory even memorable is that the Crusaders had to be fitted with a new backfield because of injuries to internationals Israel Dagg, Seta Tamanivalu and Digby Ioane, and prior to kickoff they also needed a new centre due to the withdrawal of Jack Goodhue with a calf strain.
There was also the sobering sight of forwards Jed Brown, Whetu Douglas and Mike Alaalatoa all leaving for concussion tests during the match, forcing Crusaders coach Scott Robertson to keep digging into his bench.
The major weapon, without a doubt, was their lineout drives as they forced the Blues to squirm and then capitulate.
The Blues simply had no answer and as the minutes expired deep into the final quarter the Crusaders, led by tough nut forwards like Sam Whitelock and Scott Barrett, simply upped the ante and rammed home the dagger.
The Blues arrived in the Garden City aware of their dismal record against the Crusaders; they hadn’t won there since 2004 and prior to the match they had only won one of their last 21 games away from home against New Zealand opponents.
Introducing a big, bolshie forward pack and some monsters in the backline, to boot, was a clear indication that the men from Auckland were keen to clear a path of destruction in as many channels as they could.
Lock Patrick Tuipulotu was their everywhere man, especially in the early exchanges, as he belted bodies in breakdowns and hit-up the ball like a beast.
Piers Francis didn’t do much wrong after called whistled-up to replace dumped playmaker Ihaia West, but there was no doubt the real menace in the Blues backline was the bloke in the No 12 jersey, George Moala.
Moala, built like a Sherman tank, created linebreaks, hit hard in defence. What was most impressive about the Blues’ start was their intent.
They were prepared to hit bodies, keep their arms free and pop the ball up for a support runner to gain yardage, and with the Crusaders missing 16 tackles in the first half the gaps opened-up.
Using powerful runners down the left-hand side of the park to repeatedly poke a hot needle into the re-jigged Crusaders backline allowed them to view open spaces in the opening 40 minutes, but it was down the other side of the park where one of the best tries was scored.
Some fine work by right wing Matt Duffie, who featured on the highlights reel for all the wrong reasons when the Blues last visited Christchurch because Nemani Nadolo did his best to convert him to roadkill, was instrumental in the five-pointer scored by Moala.
Duffie jinked and ducked, linked with a runner, and when the ball was recycled a few phases later Moala sighted a mis-match against prop Joe Moody and galloped to the line.
But it was the Crusaders who finished fastest, and most importantly, held their nerve.
That is four from four for Whitelock’s men.