Crusaders vs Hurricanes
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@Canes4life
Is Numia a good scrummager, because, based on last week's effort, he is a wrecking ball in the loose. -
@Frank yeah he's started very strongly this year. Him, Aumua and Lomax have rarely been bettered at scrum time this year. His work around the field is A1 and like Aumua he'll want to continue that form to press for AB selection having been selected in the AB XV side last year.
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Some of the match facts from opta:
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The Hurricanes will be aiming for back-to-back wins against the Crusaders in Super Rugby for the first time since March 2018, following their 27-26 victory when they last met in Super Rugby Pacific (3 June 2023).
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The Crusaders have lost each of their three matches in the 2024 Super Rugby Pacific season – their joint-longest losing run to begin a campaign in Super Rugby history (also L3 in 1996); in fact, the Crusaders have never lost four consecutive matches in Super Rugby.
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The Hurricanes have won each of their three matches in the 2024 Super Rugby Pacific season; the last and only time they began a campaign with a longer winning run was a seven-match span in the 2015 Super Rugby season.
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The Crusaders will be looking to avoid back-to-back defeats against New Zealand teams in Super Rugby for the first time since March 2018, following their 29-33 loss against the Chiefs in their most recent New Zealand derby in Super Rugby Pacific (23 February 2024).
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Back at Home for the First Time in 2024: Crusaders Team Naming v Hurricanes
The Crusaders have named their team to take on the Hurricanes on Friday 15 March in their first home game of the 2024 season. Round 4 of Super Rugby Pacific is an all-NZ derby at Apollo Projects Stadium, kick off 7.05pm
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1 Xavier Numia
2 Asafo Aumua (cc)
3 Tyrel Lomax
4 James Tucker
5 Isaia Walker-Leawere
6 Devan Flanders
7 Peter Lakai
8 Brayden Iose
9 Cam Roigard
10 Brett Cameron
11 Kini Naholo
12 Riley Higgins
13 Billy Proctor (cc)
14 Josh Moorby
15 Ruben Love16 James O’Reilly
17 Pouri Rakete-Stones
18 Pasilio Tosi
19 Justin Sangster
20 Du’Plessis Kirifi
21 TJ Perenara
22 Peter Umaga-Jensen
23 Salesi Rayasi -
@Duluth said in Crusaders vs Hurricanes:
The Crusaders have named their team to take on the Hurricanes on Friday 15 March in their first home game of the 2024 season. Round 4 of Super Rugby Pacific is an all-NZ derby at Apollo Projects Stadium, kick off 7.05pm
Some poor selections
Heinz at HB
Springer (Murray should have gotten the start after last week)
Gardiner at 6Canes by 30
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Yeah Canes look the better squad from the two for sure. Good to see Kirifi back to provide impact off the bench. Plenty of experience and I’ll be disappointed if we don’t take the W here but I expect it to be close.
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Big game in determining where both teams seasons are heading I feel. Crusaders will be happy to be back home and it's never an easy place to play for opposition teams. Think there's only 5-6 points in this game either way.
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@African-Monkey said in Crusaders vs Hurricanes:
Big game in determining where both teams seasons are heading I feel. Crusaders will be happy to be back home and it's never an easy place to play for opposition teams. Think there's only 5-6 points in this game either way.
maybe in previous years, where the pack was led by Whitelock and Taylor and SB, and the backline had Mounga and Jordan and Leicester and a decent midfield.
This is not that team. -
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@nzzp said in Crusaders vs Hurricanes:
TAB can't separate them - both at $1.95
When was the last time the Saders weren't favourites at home?
1996…
We might be able to pull one out of the bag, but other than the second half of the Chiefs match we have looked way off.
Canes attack the ruck and that is where we have been very disjointed.
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@gt12 said in Crusaders vs Hurricanes:
That doesn't sound very Crusaders. Teething issues for the new management or something worse?
Difference of how they should play go wide at high tempo or a more restrained game reliant on set piece and drive up the middle before going wide.
Coaches on different wave lengths.
Some coaches saying they don't have the players for one sort of game other coaches saying the same about the other alternative.
Players a bit confused. -
@Chris said in Crusaders vs Hurricanes:
@gt12 said in Crusaders vs Hurricanes:
That doesn't sound very Crusaders. Teething issues for the new management or something worse?
Difference of how they should play go wide at high tempo or a more restrained game reliant on set piece and drive up the middle before going wide.
Coaches on different wave lengths.
Some coaches saying they don't have the players for one sort of game other coaches saying the same about the other alternative.
Players a bit confused.That's far from good.
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@Chris that Waratahs game was really telling and seeing some of the formations live at the ground I was left somewhat confused about what we were trying to do.
We had plenty of attacking opportunities but after a break we didn’t quite know what was next.
Defensively our shape was off.
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@mariner4life It's not, but I'll see how they fare at home before writing them off completely.
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It's the Crusaders, i won't be writing them off until 10 minutes after they are officially eliminated
but that's the worst Crusaders team i have seen in a long time
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@mariner4life Yeah maybe I'm scarred by them, but hey, a win could well change their season, and as I said, they may be a different beast at home.
There's still more than enough in that squad to have a decent season.
