Player Ratings: Crusaders v Hurricanes

Player Ratings: Crusaders v Hurricanes

Following the Crusaders' 20th Super Rugby home playoff win we rated both side's starting XVs out of 10:

CRUSADERS: 

15. David Havili - 8 

A solid game from Havili as he repaid Scott Robertson's decision to start him over veteran All Black Israel Dagg for second week running.

He ran good support lines throughout the game and was rewarded with a try in the opening minutes of the second half.


He counter-attacked well, kicked well and looked composed throughout. 

14.  Seta Tamanivalu - 7.5


Tamanivalu had a quiet game for his standards this season but the Crusaders winger still had a great game nonetheless.

He made 69 running metres beating 3 defenders and made 1 clean break.

13. Jack Goodhue - 8.5

Goodhue seems to be getting better and better each week and this week was no different.

He ran a great line in the build up to their first try and made a great decision to hold onto the ball early in the second half with led to another try.

12. Ryan Crotty - 8

The Crotty-Goodhue combination has been key to the Crusaders success this season and the combination did some great work again in this game.

Crotty's tackling success lets him down slightly but 

11. George Bridge - 8

The Crusaders' try-scoring machine came up with his 15th try of the season when he finished off a well-worked team try before the half-hour mark.

Bridge was solid in the air and on defence and came up with 58 runnning metres beating 3 defenders.

10. Richie Mo’unga - 9 

A near perfect performance by the Crusaders first five as he guided his side to their 20th home playoff win. 

He opened the scoring for his side with a well-taken try and bossed proceeding from then onwards.

Everything seemed to come off for Mo'unga with a beautiful cross kick for Braydon Ennor's try his final trick of the match.

9. Bryn Hall - 8

Another superb game for Bryn Hall as he helped his side to 18 point lead before exiting the field in the 54th minute.

His passing was crisp and he made good decisions throughout. His kicking game also took some pressure off Mo'unga.

8. Kieran Read - 8.5 

Another strong outing for the All Black captain, he was brilliant on defence making 17 tackles without missing one!

On attack, he linked up play well with some smart passes and offloads and made 12 carries.

7. Matt Todd - 8.5

Matt Todd's impressive form continues as he terroirised the Hurricanes breakdown and lineout drives making it incredibly difficult for the Hurricanes to get on the front foot.

Like Read, Todd came up with handy 16 tackles and also failed to miss a single one.

6. Jordan Taufua - n/a

Taufua started the game lively but for the second week running an injury cut his game short as he left the field before the 20-minute mark. 

5. Sam Whitelock - 7.5

Another strong captain's contribution by Sam Whitelock.

He ran the Crusaders' lineout that maintained a 100% success. He also threw his weight around making 11 tackles and 6 carries.

4. Scott Barrett - 7

A quieter game for Barrett but the imposing lock did get a lot of work done in this game.

He made 23 running metres from his 14 carries but uncaracteristically only made 4 tackles in 80 minutes.

3. Owen Franks - 7.5

Provided a solid platform for his side to attack from. He and Moody dominated at scrum time with Franks also making 6 carries and 5 tackles.

2. Codie Taylor - 8

Another good day at the office for Codie Taylor.

His lineouts were pinpoint with the Crusaders maintiaing a 100% success rate in that department and his scrummaging was great despite the early pressure.

He was also forced to putting 79 minutes of work after Andrew Makalio withdrew before kick off and his replacement Seb Siataga only last 2 minutes before leaving the field injured.

1. Joe Moody - 7.5

A strong showing by the All Black no.1 on his return from injury. He was superb at scrum time, made all 6 of his attempted tackles and made 6 carries.

Notable mention off the Bench:

Mitchell Drummond - 8

Some superb work at the breakdown especially and picked up from where Hall left off on attack

HURRICANES: 

15. Nehe Milner-Skudder - 4

Not Milner-Skudder's finest game in a Hurricanes jersey. A few aimless/poor kicks, one of which resulting in a Crusaders' try. He failed to ignite the Hurricanes counter-attack and wasn't given a lot of attacking opportunities and was substituted in the 50th minute. 

14. Julian Savea - 8

A strong finish for his 50th Super Rugby try, a few moments of brilliance with a number of clever flick pass and offloads.

Arguably the best Hurricane in the game and ended the game with 42 running metres and 100% tackling success. 



13. Jordie Barrett - 4

A forgetful performance by the promising All Black utility back.

Barrett struggled to deal with the Crusaders attacking threats missing 50% of tackles, in fact he made 6 of his attempted 12 tackles.

On attack he made 16 running metres.

12. Ngani Laumape - 5

An ineffective outing for Laumape who was been in superb form heading into this clash.

The Hurricanes seemed to use the mini-bus as more of a playmaker than as a battering ram and that hampered his performance.

11. Ben Lam - 7.5

Like his fellow winger, Ben Lam was one of the better Hurricanes on the night.

He made 81 running metres beating 4 defenders and dotted down for a record breaking try.

His efforts, however, were all in vein as the Hurricanes failed to upset the Crusaders.



10. Beauden Barrett - 6

Although Barrett did not have a particularly bad game against the Crusaders, he was well and truly outplayed by Richie Mo'unga.

His performance did not lack any effort as he tried to forge a comeback in the second after he placed the ball centimetres short of the line for what would have been a superb solo try.

9. TJ Perenara - 5.5

Like Barrett, Perenara tried his outmost to get the Hurricanes back into the game with not too much going the halfbacks way.

8. Blade Thomson - 4

Like a number of Hurricanes in this game, Thomson was largely ineffective and had a relatively quiet game.

Was subsituted before the hour mark.

7. Gareth Evans - 7

Evans headed into this game off the back of a sublime performance against the Chiefs.

He showed glimpses of that form throughout the game and tried his best to disrupt the Crusaders attack at the breakdown.

He found some success in that area and made 11 tackles.

6. Brad Shields - 6

Far from a fairytale ending for the Hurricanes centurion in his final game for the Wellington-based side.

He made 14 tackles for his side but also missed 5 and failed to get his side on the front foot with his 4 carries. 

5. Sam Lousi - 4

After a number of dominant performances leading into this game, Lousi failed to impose himself against a brutal Crusaders pack.

4. Michael Fatialofa - 7

Faitialofa topped the tackling charts for the second week in a row making a total of 19 tackles missing just 2.

He was solid at lineout time once again and can feel relatively satisfied with his final performance for the Hurricanes.

3. Jeff Toomaga-Allen - 6

It did not all go as planned at scrum time for the Hurricanes tighthead with Joe Moodie more often than not getting the better of him.

He did do well on defence making 13 of his attempted 14 tackles and carried the ball 4 times.

2. Ricky Riccitelli - 7

Another busy game for the Hurricanes hooker who has enjoyed a fine season in the Hurricanes starting jersey.

His lineouts were good throughout but struggled against a powerful Crusaders scrum.

He weighed in with 14 tackles to try keep the Saders attack at bay and made 17 running metres from his 6 carries.

1. Toby Smith - 4

Started the game well with a few strong scrums but could not deal with the Crusaders' retaliation with him and Toomaga-Allen giving a few penalties away at scrum time.

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