Crusader players with the trophy after the consecration in Super Rugby. (AFP)
Crusaders, with the Argentine third line Paolo Matera as an appetizer, it was consecrated this Saturday 11th time champion of Super Pacific Rugby beating the Blues 21-7 in the final as a guest (first half 13-0).
The match was played at Eden Park in the city of Auckland, and Blues was local for finishing in first place in the regular round, in which Crusaders had been second.
The Crusaders’ points came from Bryan Hall and Sevu Reece’s tries, two penalties, a drop goal and a Richie Mo’unga transformation, while the Blues added a Finlay Christie try transformed by Stephen Perofeta.
Matera, an important piece of the team throughout the season e consistently praised by coach Scott Robertsonplayed 78 minutes and was replaced by Quinten Strange.
In a development where there were management errors on both sides, with a mixture of nerves and anxiety, Crusaders prevailed and played a lot in the rival field, scoring the first points with a try from Hall and a penalty, a drop and a transformation from Mo ‘anointed.
The Crusaders prevailed for their greater momentum and strength, prevailing in the fixed formations in the specials on the line.
Pablo Matera with the icing on the cake in the final between Crusaders and Blues. (AP)
A penalty from Mo’unga established 16-0 at 10 minutes of the second halfbut the Blues scored a try to thrill the cheering crowd at Eden Park when Christie pounced on a loose ball near the line on 19 minutes and scored the try.
The blues began to press, propelled by injury time, but time began to become a problem as scrum restarts consumed precious minutes. They went down 16-7 in the last 10 minutes and needed a big reaction to nail an unlikely win.
In the end, a notable Matera kick was exploited by Reece who scored a try and condemned the final and the title for the Crusaders.
Pablo Matera celebrates with his son and his companions. (AFP)
The captain of the Crusaders and historic second row of the All Blacks, Same Whitelock, underlined at the end of the match: “Sometimes it’s not just about scoring points, it’s about stopping them from scoring and the effort was great tonight.”.
Crusaders completed a 14-3 performance, of those 17 matches Matera was 12 as a starter, two as a starter and three did not play.
Crusaders is the most successful in SR with 11 titles (in 2019 they won the final against Los Jaguares 19-3, with Matera integrating the Argentine team), followed by Blues and Bulls with three.
Source: Clarin
