This is an interesting article I found written by a Rugby Haven rugby writer. This is what he had to say about the Crusaders recent form.
By MARC HINTON
The Crusaders can still save their Super 14 season – but only if they quit the whining and start indulging in some brutal honesty.
It’s been a shock for someone who’s always been an admirer of this staunch southern franchise to listen to the way they’ve reacted to a second straight defeat on tour that’s put their now customary place in the playoffs under a massive threat.
Instead of buckling down and addressing their key issues after they copped a 42-14 lesson from the Stormers at the weekend, following on from their flat-out inept performance in Perth, all we seem to have heard is what a hard time they’re getting from the referee.
Well, boo-hoo, and someone pass me the tissues.
Reality check time. The Crusaders didn’t lose to the Force because they were picked on by the ref. They lost because they dropped ball, missed tackles, failed to execute accurately at the set piece and played like headless chooks.
And they certainly didn’t lose to the Stormers at the weekend – hang on, lose is probably being too kind, they were walloped – because Stuart Dickinson didn’t give them a fair go at the breakdown.
Though that’s what the Crusaders brains trust have been trying to sell in the aftermath of their Cape Town stumble.
It’s to be hoped this is just a smokescreen for some serious work going on behind the scenes addressing an array of shortcomings.
For if that’s not the case, the Crusaders’ run of eight straight playoff appearances, and 11 in the last 12 seasons, is about to come to a shuddering halt.
I guess it’s fashionable these days to blame the referees. Everyone’s been doing it this year, from Pat Lam to Matt Giteau to now Todd Blackadder.
You’ve got to blame someone I guess when your team loses, and sometimes, for whatever reason, people are reluctant to point the finger too close to home. At least publicly.
Refs are an easy target and a fortnight ago Steve Walsh proved just that when he appeared to lose control of a fairly heated match between the Waratahs and Brumbies in Sydney. The rights and wrongs of Giteau’s pointed public response can be debated endlessly, but the reality was the Brums got the raw end of a pretty average performance from Walsh.
Ek’s nog ‘n kinders boet.. 🙂
Flok, ek en Handbriekie word al weer gebruik as Crash Test Dummies vanaand…
Blykbaar moet ek ‘n suit aanhê en Handbriekie haar blinkste nommertjie vanaand….. BonzaiHandbriekie gaan vir ons chef speel, wit Chef Jurkie en Chef hoed en al… behoorlik gedek, kerse… en ‘n maaltyd uit die boonste rakke voorberei… ons moet die disse dan krities beoordeel..
Dis ‘n Trial Run vir haar Eksamen Chef goeters wat sy Vrydag moet doen voor lektore en ‘n bekende Chef….
He he he gbs
Ons kan altyd oorkom dat sy die “real feel” kry 😆
32 – gbs, That sounds like fun…….hahaha. Enjoy it.
29 – ASH HAPPY BIRTHDAY and now into your 40’s…hehe. Time going to fly from here.
23 – Ash 😀
Happy Birthday Ash! May God grant you a an unforgetable year under these southern skies.
thanks everyone with the birthday wishes!!
especially to those who’ve done so TWICE!! 😆
Ash, what are you up to today ?
Any special celebrations ?
#38
sê elk mos nou vi’ myself
…
“thanks FOR ashley, thanks FOR!! jeez!! as djy soe angaan met daai kak engels, is djy een vannie dae ñ bloubul ondersteuner!!” 😀
#40
o fok!!
elk = ek!! 😳
blouste @ 39
ag not much!!
same old, same old!!
Ashley, I’m almost scared to ask what your same old same old is… 😆
Must say last year I thought the Saders were terrible and just expected the Sharks to beat them at the Tank. Well not beat them with a big score but beat them. They beat us. So you never know. Then we played terrible that day with plenty handling errors just when we should have scored tries. You make mistakes against this team they can come back at you.
Though really don’t see Saders beating the Bulls. In the fisrt half against the Stormers it was close. The 2nd half when Saders came out with one man in the sin bin Stormers took advantage and never looked back. Stormers thrashed them in the 2nd half. So at altitude think it is going to be tougher for Saders to just come out and beat the Bulls.
Bulls just need a win don’t have to get the bonus. So no great pressure on Bulls. Plenty pressure on Saders, they have to win this game, with pressure comes plenty mistakes too.
GO Bulls.
40 – Ash 😆
What you doing to celebrate the big 40?
puma @ 45
will maybe do something on the weekend.
just celebrate with my wife and kid tonight, though!!
38
Ashley net omdat ek opgelet het in die klas gaan ek nou nie twee keer dankie gese word nie. 😆
Baie geluk my ou Stormer vriendtjie, gelukkig verjaar jy voor die verdriet. So go celebrate.
Geniet jou dag.
H A P P Y B I R T H D A Y A S H L E Y
😆 a birthday mhawwwwwwwwwwww to you
46 – Ash, Enjoy it.
hmmm,
wonder hoekom sooooooooo baie BULLE my gelukgewens het?
uhhh,
miskien vrees hulle dat ek kontakte by wprugby het? 😆
anyway thanks almal!!
o, en hugs
DAAI soen het my dag gemaak!! 😀
Hey moegoe, ons kan darem seker een dag in die jaar met jou “nice” wees.
En ons is natuurlik die ondersteuners met die meeste goeie manier !!!
blouste @ 51
oek ma net omdat julle al bang ged*nner is … op altwee counts!! 😀
Nee omdat ons nog nie dom gebl!ksem is soos meeste Stormer supporters nie… 😉
blouste @ 53
lol
Crusaders are going to come very hard at the Bulls this weekend.. But am sure the Bulls have prepared for it accordingly.
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