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Crusaders player ratings vs Fijian Drua | Super Rugby Pacific

Sevu Reece warms up for the Crusaders. Photo by Pita Simpson/Getty Images

Boiling hot conditions in Lautoka hosted round three’s Super Rugby Pacific matchup between the Crusaders and the Fijian Drua.

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The heat had a strong influence on the game with handling errors aplenty, mainly for the visiting Crusaders. The conditions disrupted opportunities for running rugby as well, the first half was a territory battle with the Crusaders coming out with a 12-5 lead thanks to their dominant rolling maul.

The Drua embraced the occasion in the second half and gave their fans plenty to cheer about, playing some superb rugby in broken play. The handling errors continued to mount up for the Crusaders and the Drua capitalised, also using the high kick to good effect as the Crusaders struggled to claim the ball staring into the afternoon sun.

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The game came down to the wire as the Crusaders scored in the 77th minute to level the scores at 22-22. A Crusaders infringement in extra time gifted the Drua a penalty in front of the sticks and debutant Kemu Valetini stepped up and produced a historic moment for the home side.

Ultimately the pressure of Fiji’s physicality had the Crusaders scrambling, the fans were roaring and the Drua’s discipline didn’t let the reigning champs off the hook.

Fiji claims the win with a final score of 25-24.

Here’s how the Crusaders rated:

1. George Bower – 8

The pace of the Fijian attack brought out the best in Bower, his agility and physicality shined on defence. Slipped in an early scrum but had the Crusaders marching forward throughout the first half, just struggling to control the movement of the scrum at times. A knock-on in the 33rd minute spoiled a scoring opportunity.

2. Quentin MacDonald – 7

Claimed the game’s opening two tries off the back of a dominant rolling maul. Contributed well to a strong scrum and lasted a good 15 minutes longer than his front-row partners in the heat which has to be commended.

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3. Tamaiti Williams  – 7

Contributed some strong carries and won the scrum battle throughout the first half. The match was a great example of how Williams has worked on his conditioning since entering the Super Rugby scene. His side would have benefitted from more carries by the big prop. Struggled with Fiji’s second unit and was replaced ten minutes into the second half.

4. Scott Barrett  – 6.5

Claimed the lineout ball well and had some nice carries but struggled to get his troops aligned and play the usual Crusaders brand of footy. Slipped into the flanker spot late. Labelled his milestone performance “bittersweet” in the post-match interview but was proud of his accomplishment and gracious towards the Fijian side and their fans.

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5. Sam Whitelock – 6.5

The 34-year-old channelled his inner Roger Tuivasa-Sheck with a lively sidestep that got him over the line in the 18th minute, unfortunately for Sammy, he wasn’t able to ground it cleanly. Penalised a couple of times in defensive lineouts. Whitelock’s presence as one of Super Rugby’s all-time most experienced players wasn’t enough to inspire composure from his side in the pressure cooker of Churchill Park.

6. Sione Havili Talitui – 8

Gave away a blatant penalty in the third minute and was very lucky that Fiji botched the kick from right out front. Tidied up his discipline after that and made an impressive number of tackles in the first half alone. Continued his stoic defensive work in the second 40, handling some exceptional ball runners.

7. Tom Christie – 5

Was employed as a carrier early. Was stoic in defence but the dynamic play of the Drua’s loose forwards was consistently gaining front foot ball, especially in the second 40.

8. Christian Lio-Willie – 6.5

Was one of few Crusaders to claim some post-contact meters when carrying but like the rest of the visitor’s forward pack, Lio-Willie struggled to impose himself on the match.

9. Willi Heinz – 5

Early kicking game was poor. Spent much of the game tidying up scrappy ball. Excellent job disrupting what would have been the Fijian’s second try. Produced better clearances in the second half.

10. Fergus Burke – 4

Struggled to influence the game and looked rushed in his distributions throughout. Nailed a clutch kick in the 78th minute to give his side the lead.

11. Macca Springer – 5

Only managed a couple of touches but had moments where he showed some good defensive work rate.

12. David Havili – N/A

Off early.

13. Braydon Ennor – 6.5

Ennor’s rugby IQ is better suited to more structured games but when he could make sense of the Drua’s attack, his defensive reads were on point. Proved his fitness in the heat but had limited impact on the match.

14. Sevu Reece – 7

Reece clearly loves this matchup and didn’t hesitate to challenge his opposite Eroni “the sledgehammer” Sau in contact. Managed a couple of decent touches early but didn’t see the ball again until the final 10 minutes – where he scored a great try to get the Crusaders back in the game.

15. Chay Fihaki – 5

Had some shaky touches in the first half but came out more composed in the second 40. Has a tendency to go charging into contact regardless of the support around him. Wasn’t able to deploy his monster boot in a game where it could have been a real asset.

 

Replacements:

16. Ioane Moananu – 6

Displayed great enthusiasm, carrying hard. Not immune to handling errors, dropping one as he was nailed by a Fijian player.

17. Kershawl Sykes-Martin – 5.5

Came on and quickly won a scrum penalty and had some go either way after that.

18. Seb Calder – 5

19. Zach Gallagher – 5

20. Corey Kellow – 6.5

Found himself as the last line of defence down the left wing and dropped the tackle on a rampaging Joseva Tamani. squared up the attack with a few runs, providing a rare glimpse at a stable attacking foundation for the Crusaders.

21. Noah Hotham – 7

Hotham continues to impress with his attacking instincts and skillset. Dropped the final kickoff, ultimately leading to the Drua’s match-winning kick.

22. Taha Kemara – 5

23. Dallas McLeod – 7.5

McLeod came on early for an injured David Havili and injected himself into the match quickly. Attacked the Fijian line with perhaps the most enthusiasm of any Crusaders player and proved his physicality was up to the test.

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O
Oh no, not him again? 2 hours ago
England internationals disagree on final play execution vs All Blacks

Okay, so we blew it big time on Saturday. So rather than repeating what most people have all ready said, what do I want to see from Borthwick going forward?


Let's keep Marcus Smith on the pitch if he's fit and playing well. I was really pleased with his goal kicking. It used to be his weakness. I feel sympathy for George Ford who hadn't kicked all match and then had a kick to win the game. You hear pundits and commentators commend kickers who have come off the bench and pulled that off. Its not easy. If Steve B continues to substitute players with no clear reason then he is going to get criticised.


On paper I thought England would beat NZ if they played to their potential and didn't show NZ too much respect. Okay, the off the ball tackles certainly stopped England scoring tries, but I would have liked to see more smashing over gainlines and less kicking for position. Yes, I also know it's the Springbok endorsed world cup double winning formula but the Kiwi defence isn't the Bok defence, is it. If you have the power to put Smith on the front foot then why muzzle him? I guess what I'm saying is back, yourself. Why give the momentum to a team like NZ? Why feed the beast? Don't give the ball to NZ. Well d'uh.


Our scrum is a long term weakness. If you are going to play Itoje then he needs an ogre next door and a decent front row. Where is our third world class lock? Where are are realible front row bench replacements? The England scrum has been flakey for a while now. It blows hot and cold. Our front five bench is not world class.


On the positive side I love our starting backrow right now. I'd like to see them stick together through to the next world cup.


Anyway, there is always another Saturday.

7 Go to comments
C
CO 2 hours ago
Scott Robertson responds to criticism over All Blacks' handling errors

Robertson is more a manager of coaches than a coach so it comes down to intent of outcomes at a high level. I like his intent, I like the fact his Allblacks are really driving the outcomes however as he's pointed out the high error rates are not test level and their control of the game is driving both wins and losses. England didn't have to play a lot of rugby, they made far fewer mistakes and were extremely unlucky not to win.


In fact the English team were very early in their season and should've been comfortably beaten by an Allblacks team that had played multiple tests together.


Razor has himself recognised that to be the best they'll have to sort out the crisis levels of mistakes that have really increased since the first two tests against England.


Early tackles were a classic example of hyper enthusiasm to not give an inch, that passion that Razor has achieved is going to be formidable once the unforced errors are eliminated.


That's his secret, he's already rebuilt the passion and that's the most important aspect, its inevitable that he'll now eradicate the unforced errors. When that happens a fellow tier one nation is going to get thrashed. I don't think it will be until 2025 though.


The Allblacks will lose both tests against Ireland and France if they play high error rates rugby like they did against England.


To get the unforced errors under control he's going to be needing to handover the number eight role to Sititi and reset expectations of what loose forwards do. Establish a clear distinction with a large, swarthy lineout jumper at six that is a feared runner and dominant tackler and a turnover specialist at seven that is abrasive in contact. He'll then need to build depth behind the three starters and ruthlessly select for that group to be peaking in 2027 in hit Australian conditions on firm, dry grounds.


It's going to help him that Savea is shifting to the worst super rugby franchise where he's going to struggle behind a beaten pack every week.


The under performing loose forward trio is the key driver of the high error rates and unacceptable turn overs due to awol link work. Sititi is looking like he's superman compared to his openside and eight.


At this late stage in the season they shouldn't be operating with just the one outstanding loose forward out of four selected for the English test. That's an abject failure but I think Robertson's sacrificing link quality on purpose to build passion amongst the junior Allblacks as they see the reverential treatment the old warhorses are receiving for their long term hard graft.


It's unfortunately losing test matches and making what should be comfortable wins into nail biters but it's early in the world cup cycle so perhaps it's a sacrifice worth making.


However if this was F1 then Sam Cane would be Riccardo and Ardie would be heading into Perez territory so the loose forwards desperately need revitalisation through a rebuild over the next season to complement the formidable tight five.

28 Go to comments
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TRENDING Everyone is saying the same thing after agonising England loss Everyone is saying the same thing after agonising England loss
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