Crusaders crash Brumbies’ party as Blues stay on top

Canterbury Crusaders brought the ACT Brumbies’ winning streak against New Zealand sides to an end as Scott Robertson’s side secured a 37-26 win in Canberra that moves them level on points with the Australians in the Super Rugby standings.

The Crusaders proved too good for a Brumbies side that had notched up wins over the Otago Highlanders, the Wellington Hurricanes and the Waikato Chiefs over the last three weeks.

Irae Simone gave the

Brumbies an early lead but Codie Taylor crossed the line before Sevu Reece, appearing in his 50th game in Super Rugby, became the fastest player to score 40 tries in the competition as the Crusaders took control.

Bryn Hall and Will Jordon added tries while Richie Mo’unga’s kicking earned 17 points to take him through the 1,000-point barrier for his career.

The Crusaders now sit on 43 points alongside the Brumbies.

The pair trail the Auckland Blues by seven points after Leon MacDonald’s side sealed a 53-26 win over Queensland Reds, and the Brumbies will take on the leaders in their next game on Saturday.

“We, obviously, know the Blues are in some good form, we’ve just got to make sure [we improve] with errors and our physicality,” the Brumbies’ Allan Alaalatoa said after the loss against the Crusaders.

“We’ve just got to make sure we’re clear on those learnings and how we can turn that around because if we do the same thing again next week, we’ll probably be in [the] same situation.”

The Blues notched up an 11th consecutive win with their victory over the Reds at Eden Park, with MacDonald’s team opening up a 17-point lead inside the opening 20 minutes.

Bryce Heem, Caleb Clarke and Soane Vikena all scored two tries each as the Blues picked up the bonus-point victory.

Ardie Savea’s 74th-minute try earned the Hurricanes a 2218 win over the New South Wales Waratahs to move into fourth in the table, while the Fijian Drua defeated Moana Pasifika 34-19 to win the clash between Super Rugby’s debutant teams.

The Western Force were on the wrong end of a 61-10 thrashing at the hands of the Highlanders, and Ollie Norris’s 79th-minute try secured the Chiefs a 33-30 win over the Melbourne Rebels to keep the New Zealanders in fourth.