Crusaders v Chiefs: Super Rugby Pacific final showdown in Christchurch one to watch
Braydon Ennor and his Crusaders teammates celebrate after beating the Blues on Friday. Photo / Photosport
THE FACTS
The Super Rugby Pacific final on Saturday night, when the Crusaders host the Chiefs, should be a tremendously tense, exciting contest. I can fully understand why the TAB is offering exactly the same odds, of $1.90, for both teams.
Few would have been predicting, before the 2025 season
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1News
6 hours ago
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'Quiet revolution' - the finals edge which favours the Crusaders
Analysis: The red and blacks have home advantage against the Chiefs but also a belief in a vastly improved defensive system, writes Patrick McKendry. There were moments during the finale to the Crusaders' Super Rugby Pacific semifinal victory over the Blues in Christchurch when the visitors seemed more likely to score than not – just as they did in their win over the Chiefs the previous week. That they could not cross the line despite putting together 38 consecutive phases with their possession of a wide array of attacking weapons represents a huge shift for the Crusaders, one that may even qualify as a quiet revolution, which will give them a huge amount of confidence ahead of the competition showpiece on Saturday night. The Crusaders have lost only three matches this season – one fewer than the Chiefs, who could not withstand the Blues' late pressure in their qualifier defeat at Waikato Stadium. But those losses – two to the Chiefs (home and away), and one to Moana Pasifika (home) – were heavy and characterised by a defensive system that was either not fit for purpose at the time or not understood well enough by the players. ADVERTISEMENT In February, the Chiefs scored five unanswered second-half tries against the Crusaders in a 49-24 thrashing in Hamilton. The next month the Crusaders leaked four first-half tries to Moana Pasifika – two to skipper Ardie Savea – and, after battling back to 31-22, promptly let in two more in three minutes as the visitors ran away with an historic 45-29 win. The red and black ship was righted in the form of four consecutive wins before a bye, but the Chiefs wobbled it again with an extraordinary 35-19 victory in May after coming back from a 19-10 halftime deficit. The Chiefs scored three tries after the break, with Damian McKenzie kicking two penalties for good measure. It was a crushing victory on many levels. All three Crusaders' defeats had one thing in common: the red and blacks were overpowered and leaked tries in bunches. They appeared to have no answers to whatever questions the opposition were asking. Midfielder Rieko Ioane scores for the Blues in Christchurch. (Source: Photosport) Since then they have strung together victories over the Waratahs (away), Highlanders (home), Brumbies (away), Reds in the home qualifier, and their remarkable semifinal 21-14 win over the Blues at home last Friday. ADVERTISEMENT They did their latest win the hard way, coming back from a 14-0 deficit and then withstanding an extraordinary amount of pressure to prevent the visitors from taking the match into extra-time. It's no wonder that Crusaders head coach Rob Penney made a special mention of the team's defence coach Matt Todd, a former All Blacks and Crusaders loose forward, afterwards. 'The last few minutes was just heart and soul. Toddy has done great work with the D, it's been building all year,' Penney said. 'It was just awesome, the boys dug deep and showed how much it means to them and how much they care about this place. And they wanted to get another week, which is just such a joy.' The Blues deserve credit for their ability to retain the ball for so long in what was a frantic finish, but, before that, their discipline issues made it difficult to maintain pressure. "Because it was such a tight contest, you paid for any slight error,' coach Vern Cotter said afterwards. 'And I think that penalty count 16-9 was against us. 'That in itself is hard in a knockout game, and credit to the Crusaders. They move on and the season finishes for us.'' ADVERTISEMENT After his team's 37-17 semifinal defeat to the Chiefs, Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham made reference to the difficulty of playing away from home in finals matches. Hosting this match – the Crusaders' first home grand final since 2017 – is a big advantage. After all, their record in home playoffs now stands at 31-0. But beyond that the belief and understanding in their defensive system in the cold and wet conditions they seem to love so much could give them an edge in Christchurch.
RNZ News
9 hours ago
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Chiefs coach McMillan does not fear Crusaders ahead of Super Rugby Pacific final
Emoni Narawa of the Chiefs dives to score a try. Photo: Jeremy Ward / Chiefs coach Clayton McMillan is refusing to be overawed by the prospect of facing the Crusaders in their Christchurch stronghold when the teams face off in the Super Rugby Pacific final later this week. The Crusaders have won 31 consecutive playoff matches on home soil in the competition over the last three decades and will take on the Chiefs on Saturday after handing the Blues a 21-14 defeat on Friday. The Chiefs, who finished on top of the regular season standings, beat the ACT Brumbies 37-17 in the semi-finals on Saturday to advance to a third consecutive decider, prompting McMillan to dismiss concerns over the Crusaders' home record. "We don't have any fear about going down to Christchurch and playing the Crusaders," he said. "We're one team that's had our fair share of success down there. "We know it's not going to be easy. They've got a formidable record and they're a quality team and they demonstrated that [against the Blues]. "You've got to be at your best, you've got to take every opportunity that presents itself and the best team on the day will win. "It's a hostile reception down there no matter when you go, first round of the year or the final. We're pretty accustomed to that and we can generate some energy off that." Will Jordan of the Crusaders scores a try during the Super Rugby Pacific Semi Final against the Blues, 2025. Photo: © Photosport Ltd 2025 The Chiefs' confidence will be boosted by the 35-19 win they secured over the Crusaders in May, although a defeat to the Blues in the first round of playoffs saw McMillan's side surrender their home field advantage in the final. McMillan will send his players into the decider determined that they work as a team rather than as individuals to claim the title for the first time since 2013. "We've got to embrace the opportunity that's directly in front of us and we've got to get down to get it done," he said. "There won't be any one (person) that will do that, it will be the collective. "Our Achilles heel in the past has been that we've wanted something so bad that it becomes detrimental sometimes. You try a little bit too hard. "All we have to do is back ourselves and do what we've done all year; play Chiefs rugby, work hard for each other, nail the small moments, apply enough pressure on the Crusaders that they feel that pressure. "If you win enough of those, you give yourself enough of a chance of walking away with the title." - Reuters
NZ Herald
13 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Crusaders v Chiefs: Super Rugby Pacific final showdown in Christchurch one to watch
Braydon Ennor and his Crusaders teammates celebrate after beating the Blues on Friday. Photo / Photosport THE FACTS The Super Rugby Pacific final on Saturday night, when the Crusaders host the Chiefs, should be a tremendously tense, exciting contest. I can fully understand why the TAB is offering exactly the same odds, of $1.90, for both teams. Few would have been predicting, before the 2025 season
