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Watch: Crusaders' whiz kid Will Jordan scorches Reds in first Super Rugby start

Will Jordan of the Crusaders. (Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)

After a year sitting on the sidelines, it isn’t taking long for Crusaders fullback Will Jordan to make a name for himself in Super Rugby after his first start against the Reds.

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The youngster has drawn praise from fans after scorching the Reds for 121 metres on 19 carries. He made 5 clean breaks and scored his first Super Rugby try.

The Crusaders went coast-to-coast after scoring their first try, using a wide movement from inside their 22 to stretch the Reds to the edge. Jordan, looming on the inside, took an offload from Jack Goodhue and used his searing pace to burn downfield before feeding Braydon Ennor. The winger couldn’t finish but found Jordan back on the inside for a sensational try.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BugPGRJhalR/

It looked like the Crusaders would run away with it early after building a quick 10-0 lead but the Reds managed to fight back and strike with Samu Kerevi on the stroke of halftime to reduce the lead to 10-7.

The Reds toiled but eventually could not stop the rolling maul which the Crusaders used to score twice.

A late consolation try to Scott Higginbotham earned some respectability on the scoreboard as the Crusaders took home a 22-12 win, their 18th-straight victory.

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Reds coach Brad Thorn rued some poor kicking choices from his team, lamenting the ability of his side to hold onto the ball.

“It felt like we got opportunities with ball and we turned it straight back over,” he said.

“When we hold the ball … things can happen.”

The defending champions stay undefeated in their quest for three straight titles and move on where they will face the hapless Chiefs at home next week. The Chiefs lost to the Sunwolves at home to start the season 0-3 and will desperately need a result soon to get their season back on track.

The Reds are now 0-2 and face a stiff test against the Waratahs in Sydney.

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Nickers 23 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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