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'Canes and Crusaders in dramatic draw

Fri, 02 Apr 2010 10:33

Back to his best: Hurricanes' try-scorer Ma'a Nonu

The Hurricanes and Crusaders played to dramatic 26-all draw in their crucial Super 14 Round Eight match in Wellington on Friday.

Not many tries but lots and lots of activity and eventually nail-biting excitement as the Crusaders came desperately back to  secure a win, and then Daniel Carter's narrow miss with the conversion which would have won the game after the only try of the second half had been scored four minutes after the final siren had sounded.

In fact it was a wonderful match - the forward power of the Crusaders against the running skills of the Hurricanes, the great fightback of the Hurricanes who were 18-0 down after 25 minutes and 25 minutes later led 20-18. There were two desperate tries -0 the Hurricanes desperate after a great 2010 start and then a succession of four defeats - not great for a team with great players.

There was drama aplenty. There was also controversy - the second Crusaders' try, the penalty against Andrew Hore on the Hurricanes' line, the TMO decision for the Crusaders' last try.

It was, unsurprisingly, windy in Wellington, and the Crusaders had the first use of the wind and dominated the first 25 minutes, mostly through the greater strength of their pack. They used lots of pick-'n-drive and did so effectively. They tried line-out mauling and were occasionally effective. The scrums were a mess but the Crusaders were considerably better at them ,earning a tighthead and two penalties. But the resilience of the Hurricanes was admirable as they scrapped at every tackle and then had Ma'a Nonu at his running best.

Part of their poor the poor start for the Hurricanes was playing into the wind, but largely a rickety performance by flyhalf Willie Repia who was replaced by Aaron Cruden in the first half. Ironically the Hurricanes' did not score another try after the substitution had been made.

After a stodgy start the game burst into life as Robbie Fruean burst down the left. He got to about six metres from the line on the left. The Crusaders took the ball wide through the left where a succession of forwards gave sympathetic passes and George Whitelock burst through Michael Paterson to score. 5-0 after 3 minutes.

The Crusaders stayed attacking with a burst by Ti'i Paulo. Play went hither and thither through phases till Rodney So'oialo and John Schwalger were penalised in front of their posts. Carter goaled. 11-0 after 8 minutes.

The Hurricanes had an eminently kickable penalty soon after and opted for a scrum, not their strong point in the game, but they got a free kick from it and attacked but the Crusaders broke out, did their pick-'n-drive routine and Zac Guilford and Sam Whitelock were close.

Nonu was penalised for a dangerous tackle - a shoulder charge this time, and Carter made it 11-0. In so doing he became the second player, after Stirling Mortlock, to pass a thousand points in Super rugby.

The Hurricanes attacked but Sean Maitland easily intercepted  a diagonal kick by Repia and was tackled out by Cory Jane at the cornerpost.

Then came the controversial try. Piri Weepu kicked out, Conrad Smith handled the ball and Andy Ellis threw in quickly. (The law requires that only the player throwing in the ball may handle in touch.) The Hurricanes hesitated, Fruean burst down the left and played inside to Guildford who scored at the posts. 18-0 after 25 minutes.

It looked as if the Crusaders were cruising to victory but looks were deceptive. Nonu had a bit of room to get a spurt on, beat two, shrugged off Colin Slade and scored. Ripia converted. 18-14 after 28 minutes.

Now the Hurricanes played with renewed vigour and greater confidence and they were rewarded with a wonderful try.

Jane, in his lilac boots, kicked, chased and caught his own kick in the left. The Hurricanes went far tight and then came back far right. Conrad Smith did well and gave to Jane who was close, then slipping a little pass to Jeremy Thrush who scored. Ripia converted. 18-14 after 34 minutes.

The Crusaders still had time for another attack with Carter in the van and Ellis tackled as he tried to ground the ball in the left corner.

The Hurricanes had the wind in the second half but the Crusaders started attacking with pick-'n-drive will their hands failed and André Taylor intercepted for the Hurricanes to clear.

Wyatt Crockett was penalised for being offside at a tackle/ruck and Weepu made it 18-17 after 50 minutes.

A minute later he gave his side the lead with his second penalty - this time against Kahn Fotuali'i for getting in the way of a chasing player. It was a brilliant kick. 20-18 after 51 minutes.

But Paterson was "miles" offside at a tackle/ruck and Crater restored the Crusaders' lead. 21-20 after 55 minutes.

But Weepu then kicked two penalties, one against George Whitelock at a tackle and one against Owen Franks for being offside. 26-21 with 16 minutes to play.

For most of this time the Crusaders attacked. Richie McCaw had a burst and they kept working their way upfield. Now penalties would count.

With a minute and a half to go Schwalger was penalised for being offside. There was time for the line-out. The Crusaders mauled to the line. When they were stropped, the referee penalised Andrew Hore for collapsing the maul. The Crusaders opted for a scrum and bashed. while the noise in the great stadium expressed the excitement and desperation of the home fans. After 12 phases and great defence on the Hurricanes' line, the referee called "No hands" but Hore used his hands to take the ball back to kill it. He was penalised. Again the Crusaders took the scrum and again they bashed and bashed as the heroic Hurricanes kept them out till the referee stopped play and asked the TMO if there was a discernable reason not to award the try. The TMO had a long look and advised that there was nothing to stop the awarding of the try by Paulo.

Carter had a conversion from about six metres in from touch but his kick was to the left of the upright.

Man of the Match: You want to say Ma'a Nonu for the brilliance of his running and then you worry that he conceded three penalties. But in the end you decide that the excitement and energy  he generated outweighed anything negative that he did and declare Ma'a Nonu the man of the Match.

The scorers:

For the Hurricanes:
Tries: Nonu, Thrush
Cons: Ripia 2
Pens: Weepu 4

For the Crusaders:
Tries: Whitelock, Guildford, Paulo
Con: Carter
Pens: Carter 3

Teams:

Hurricanes: 15 Cory Jane, 14 Andre Taylor, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma'a Nonu, 11 Hosea Gear, 10 Willie Ripia, 9 Piri Weepu, 8 Rodney So'oialo, 7 Karl Lowe, 6 Victor Vito, 5 Michael Paterson, 4 Jeremy Thrush, 3 Neemia Tialata, 2 Andrew Hore (captain), 1 John Schwalger.
Replacements: 16 Dane Coles, 17 Anthony Perenise, 18 Bryn Evans, 19 Scott Waldrom, 20 Tyson Keats, 21 Aaron Cruden, 22 Jason Kawau.

Crusaders: 15 Colin Slade, 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Robbie Fruean, 12 Ryan Crotty, 11 Zac Guildford, 10 Daniel Carter, 9 Andy Ellis, 8 Kieran Read, 7 George Whitelock, 6 Richie McCaw (captain), 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Brad Thorn, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Ti'i Paulo, 1 Wyatt Crockett.
Replacements: 16 Daniel Perrin, 17 Ben Franks, 18 Chris Jack, 19 Thomas Waldrom, 20 Kahn Fotuali'i, 21 Adam Whitelock, 22 Jared Payne.

Referee: Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Garratt Williamson (New Zealand), Kane McBride (New Zealand)
TMO: Glenn Newman (New Zealand)

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