Breakdown critical as champions chase five-peat
past two games when Luke Jacobson was sidelined with concussion, following a not-so-ideal way to start the year.
Having asked the coaches for game-time with a Taranaki side at the Tailevu Sevens in Auckland on the last weekend of January, Sowakula was granted his request, though came away with a PCL knee injury which set him back some.
‘‘Annoying for me for the start of the season, I didn’t get to play the first game, or even the first pre-season hitout,’’ he said.
‘‘But lucky it wasn’t that long, it just took six weeks, I was just taking it easy, back on rehab, and after the fourth round I was back in.’’
Indeed, Sowakula’s return in fact coincided with the Chiefs ending their 11-game losing run, and after getting back into his work with three appearances off the bench, it’s been a swift ascent back to his bruising best.
So much so that, despite Jacobson’s return, coach Clayton McMillan felt no option but to include Sowakula in the starting XV for the final, so has handed him the No 6 jersey.
‘‘This week, it will be another big game and I’ll just try and prove myself again,’’ Sowakula said.
Keep doing that and the man’s wildest rugby dreams could soon indeed become a reality.
Ensuring the Chiefs don’t feast at the breakdown will go a long way to winning a fifth straight Super Rugby title tonight. The Crusaders aren’t afraid to admit they’ve put the area under the microscope ahead of the home decider at Orangetheory Stadium in Christchurch, knowing they’ve been pillaged by the opposition in recent fixtures.
They also know ball hungry Chiefs loose forwards Pita Gus Sowakula, Lachlan Boshier and Luke Jacobson will be licking their chops as the visitors attempt to accomplish something no side has done – beat the Crusaders in Christchurch in a home playoff game.
Crusaders coach Scott Robertson has been involved as both a player and coach in many of the 24 playoff wins they’ve amassed since Super Rugby’s inception in 1996, including triumphant finals in 2018 and 2019, versus the Lions and Jaguares respectively.
However, if they’re to keep the record intact and bag a fifth title in as many years since he took over as coach, he knows they can’t continue to have an abundance of pill ripped from under their snouts, as was the case during second round matches against the Hurricanes, Chiefs and Blues.
‘‘We know it’s one of their strengths, extremely capable. They have got a number of guys who can get their head on the ball and turn it over, and it’s kept them in a lot of games.
‘‘They’re extremely good at staying in games. They’re scrappers, they just keep going, they care for each other, and they play some tough footy.’’
Fixing the area which has hindered their game doesn’t require the secondment of a rocket scientist.
Rather, it’s about winning the race to the breakdown, burying their heads and moving the pesky Chiefs fetchers before they can get their hands on the ball.
Crusaders loose forward Ethan Blackadder accepts the Chiefs will target the breakdown in his first nonclub rugby final.
‘‘We’ve done a lot of clean out stuff, winning races and just getting on the ball as early as you can has been a big picture shown in this competition,’’ he said.
‘‘Absolutely [they will target us], they’ve got a pretty good loose forward trio, it’s one of their strengths they will lean on.’’
Blackadder didn’t feature in the 2018 and 2019 Super Rugby finals, and missed Tasman’s 2019 and 2020 NPC triumphs through injury.
That makes today’s decider the biggest match of his career to date, and he’s not the only one as the Crusaders prepare for their first final since more than 1000 caps left after the 2019 campaign.
However, they’ve still got the likes of Sam Whitelock, Scott Barrett, Codie Taylor, David Havili and Mitchell Drummond to lean on.
‘‘Sometimes you look up around the room and there’s been a lot of guys who have played a lot of finals, been through high pressure moments. It’s cool to hear what they say and to see how they go about their work,’’ Blackadder said.
In addition to the breakdown, the Crusaders’ penalty count – they’ve conceded a competition-high 99 penalties – has hindered them.
While the Chiefs are dead-last in points scored (187) and tries scored (18), they’ve been winning on the back of Damian McKenzie penalty goals, including a late one which sunk the Crusaders in Hamilton last month.
The Crusaders, who have scored a competitionleading 30 tries, outscored the Chiefs three tries to two on the day, yet still came up short.
‘‘Look, Ben O’Keeffe being the ref, great technical ref, really good around the breakdown, gives us good clear pictures. It’s a good announcement,’’ Robertson said.
‘‘Discipline is always really important because it is probably a few more threes than tries [in finals], depending on the nature of the game.’’