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Calls for Mo'unga to wear All Blacks 10 jersey intensify after another Crusaders defeat for Barrett
A fourth consecutive defeat for the Hurricanes against the Crusaders has once again raised question marks over who should wear the All Blacks 10 jersey after Barrett’s less-than-impressive showing on Friday night.
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New Zealand fans from the South Island have long been calling for Mo’unga to take over, with Steve Hansen having to publicly pour water over the debate claiming that Crusaders have a ‘Rolls Royce’ pack in defence of his incumbent.
The Crusaders romped to a 32-8 win in ‘Beauden’s house’, leading to many fans asking for Barrett’s benching with the All Blacks.
Beauden Barrett has had a really bad game today. And that’s not just the intercepts he’s been throwing all over. He’s done pretty much nothing to get the team going. #HURvCRU
— Moses Rudende (BEWILDERED HERD MEMBER #0069) (@rudende) March 29, 2019
Richie Mo'unga once again outplayed Beauden Barrett, this time round it was at Beaudens house. 🔴⚫ #HURvCRU #United #likenoother
— Malcolm Dixon-Searle (@SearleDixon) March 29, 2019
On this first half performance alone Richie Mo'unga should be a shoe in for All Blacks 10 & Beauden Barrett would be lucky to get the bench position. #HURvCRU #SuperRugby
— Arshad Daud (@Arshad_Daud) March 29, 2019
Two intercepts thrown by Beauden Barrett tonight, plus a ton of passes that found grass.
How often do you see that?#HURvCRU
— Michael Pulman 🇳🇿🏉♿️ (@realmikepulman) March 29, 2019
#HURvCRU That awkward moment when Mo'unga just outplayed the 2x world player of the yr 😏😭
— 👋🏽 Joe (@joenotaverage) March 29, 2019
After two cheap tries on the back of mistakes in the Hurricanes back three, the Crusaders built a healthy lead which the Hurricanes had to chase. In similar circumstances to the game in Christchurch last year, Barrett’s errors compounded as they tried to find a way back into the game.
The RugbyPass Index has seen Richie Mo’unga overtake Barrett on the back of early season Super Rugby form, the second time in the last 12-months he has done so.
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With just 38% possession the Crusaders outscored the Hurricanes four tries to one, bouncing back from their loss in Sydney last week in emphatic fashion. The win secured top spot in the conference for the Crusaders while the Hurricanes maintained second place but slipped five competition points behind.
Barrett will get the chance to rebound in another Kiwi derby against the Highlanders in Dunedin on Friday night while the Crusaders will host the Brumbies in Christchurch.
Michael Cheika talks to RugbyPass:
