Following the Crusaders’ 31-24 victory over the Hurricanes in Wellington, here’s how we rated Rob Penney’s men in the Super Rugby Pacific New Zealand derby.
Crusaders player ratings v Hurricanes
15 Will Jordan: Just what you’d expect from the All Blacks full-back, class. Covered the backfield well, made some great inroads into the Hurricanes defence and came up with a clutch intercept on Brad Shields’ no-look pass. 7
14 Chay Fihaki: A few soft moments including a penalty and a poor tackle attempt leading to Peter Umaga-Jensen’s first try. Took his chance to score superbly in the corner. Got better as the game went on.
13 Levi Aumua: A nightmare for the Hurricanes’ defence as he consistently took at least two defenders with him – often running over one – with ball in hand and completed some eye-catching offloads. Defensively sound too. 7
12 David Havili: Back from injury and frankly probably a game too soon for the All Blacks back. His only real notable positive impact was cleaning up a deep kick rather well. Otherwise, it was a subpar game filled with silly errors including a stupid penalty for a push on the kick chase, a poor tackle on Ruben Love who shunted him to the floor in the build-up to Umaga-Jenson’s try and a rubbish cross-kick with Sevu Reece saving his blushes. Rightly replaced before half-time after a mare. 3
11 Sevu Reece: A few nice runs but far from his most impactful game. The shift to centre didn’t help his chances but he was solid without being a standout for the Crusaders. 5
10 Taha Kemara: A few brave shots in defence. Kicked rather well out of hand despite overcooking a few. He is no Richie Mo’unga yet, but he is a quality player and game manager and showed it today despite the HIA interruption. 7
9 Noah Hotham: If the Crusaders man hopes to add to his Test cap tally this year after debuting in 2024, he has some serious work to do. While his passing and decision-making are sharp, but his box-kicking leaves much to be desired. Sure Wellington is not the easiest venue to kick at but to be an international nine, you have to be able to perform in all conditions. His performance wasn’t detrimental for the Crusaders but he needs to improve for his personal ambitions. 6
Back-five forwards
8 Christian Lio-Willie: Made some telling impacts at crucial times throughout the 80 minutes. Crucial to winning the gain-line battle for the Crusaders but also won that battle when he went into the tackles. A consistent performer for the men in red. 8
7 Ethan Blackadder: Yellow card aside, it was an all-court shift on both sides of the ball. Another who was incredibly busy. 7
6 Cullen Grace: Never lacks effort but not his brightest performance. Made his tackles but was less impactful with ball in hand and replaced on the hour mark. 6
5 Jamie Hannah: The youngster threw his weight around well on defence in a busy shift with 14 tackles and got his hands on the ball plenty. A workmanlike performance, can’t ask for much more from a second-rower. 7
4 Scott Barrett: A statement performance from the All Blacks skipper to silence his doubters. He admitted that he hasn’t been at his best recently but today was. Sure he assisted two tries with sharp attacking play but his lineout, breakdown and defensive work were of his usual standard and some. 8
Front-rowers and bench
3 Fletcher Newell: With James Doleman wanting to avoid scrums as much as possible, the All Blacks tighthead didn’t get the opportunity to really flex his prowess there. His theatrical fall in the first half was over the top while he was a bit quiet around the park but good in the mauls. 5
2 Ioane Moananu: If he keeps trucking along at his current rate of form, an All Blacks call is bound to come. Solid set-pieces, and was excellent in the tackle and the breakdown while he scored a great try running a good support line on Barrett. A breakout season for the 24-year-old. 8
1 Tamaiti Williams: Continues to show his quality all around the park. Peter Lakai sensationally held the big man up denying him a double. While he would have loved more of a shot at Tyrel Lomax in the scrum, he really made his mark around the park. 7
Replacements: The bench blew hot and cold. James O’Connor was classy in his cameo during Kemara’s HIA and in the latter stages but Antonio Shalfoon’s yellow card almost cost his team the game. Macca Springer made multiple errors that also put his side under the pump while George Bower was solid. Tom Christie came up with the clutch turnover that DuPlessis Kirifi replied with. 5
Src: Planetrugby.com - https://www.planetrugby.com/news/crusaders-player-ratings-scott-barrett-silences-critics-in-statement-shift-while-returning-all-blacks-back-has-a-mare
