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Crusaders v Chiefs - The Hard Numbers

Crusaders’ David Havili is tackled by Anton Lienert-Brown

The Crusaders host the Chiefs in an all New Zealand semi final in Christchurch this weekend where they will look to continue an incredible home finals winning streak.

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The Chiefs have had the wood on the Crusaders in recent finals meetings however the Crusaders appear back to their dominant best. Read on for all the key numbers ahead of this one which is bound to be a real thriller.

  • The Crusaders won 31-24 when these teams met in Round 13 this season, their first win against the Chiefs since 2014; they’ll now be looking for back-to-back wins against them for the first time since Round 14, 2011.
  • This will be the third Finals meeting between these teams after they met in the semi-finals of both 2012 and 2013, the Chiefs earning wins in both but by no more than three points on either occasion.
  • The Crusaders have never lost a Finals fixture when playing as the home team on the day (W17).
  • The Crusaders (17m 47secs) average the most time in possession of any team so far this season, while the Chiefs (14m 19secs) average the least.
  • Only Damian McKenzie (74) has beaten more defenders than David Havili (58) so far this campaign.
  • James Lowe has made 37 clean breaks so far this season, four more than any other player, and has found the try line in five of his last six games against the Crusaders.
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Nickers 38 minutes ago
Scott Robertson responds to criticism over All Blacks' handling errors

I thought we made a lot of progress against that type of defence by the WC last year. Lots of direct running and punching holes rather than using width. Against that type of defence I think you have to be looking to kick on first phase when you have front foot ball which we did relatively successfully. We are playing a lot of rugby behind the gain line at the moment. They are looking for those little interchanges for soft shoulders and fast ball or off loads but it regularly turns into them battering away with slow ball and going backwards, then putting in a very rushed kick under huge pressure.


JB brought that dimension when he first moved into 12 a couple of years ago but he's definitely not been at his best this year. I don't know if it is because he is being asked to play a narrow role, or carrying a niggle or two, but he does not look confident to me. He had that clean break on the weekend and stood there like he was a prop who found himself in open space and didn't know what to do with the ball. He is still a good first phase ball carrier though, they use him a lot off the line out to set up fast clean ball, but I don't think anyone is particularly clear on what they are supposed to do at that point. He was used really successfully as a second playmaker last year but I don't think he's been at that role once this year. He is a triple threat player but playing a very 1 dimensional role at the moment. He and Reiko have been absolutely rock solid on defence which is why I don't think there will be too much experimentation or changes there.

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