The Crusaders survived three yellow cards and a first-half deficit to claim a stirring 29–18 victory over the Highlanders in an absorbing South Island derby at Apollo Projects Stadium, with debutant flanker Johnny Lee announcing himself with a match-winning double.
Key moments
4 mins – TRY CRUSADERS: Will Jordan slices through the defence with a right-foot step 30 metres out, using his pace to beat multiple defenders before dragging three Highlanders over the line. Rivez Reihana misses the conversion from 15 metres in from the right touchline. (Crusaders 5–0 Highlanders)
14 mins – YELLOW CARD CRUSADERS: Codie Taylor is shown yellow for a cynical offside as the Highlanders threaten inside the 22, with the Crusaders’ defensive line under sustained pressure.
20 mins – TRY HIGHLANDERS: The Highlanders earn a free kick from the scrum and go quickly. Folau Fakatava delivers a pinpoint cutout pass to Caleb Tangitau, who bursts through the line and draws Will Jordan before finding Tanielu Tele’a on his inside. Cameron Millar misses the conversion. (Crusaders 5–5 Highlanders)
27 mins – TRY HIGHLANDERS: Angus Ta’avao produces a rare 30-metre break straight up the middle, gassing into space before dishing off to Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens. The fullback has too much pace for Reihana in cover and strolls over untouched. Millar converts. (Crusaders 5–12 Highlanders)
32 mins – TRY CRUSADERS: Braydon Ennor is brought down two metres short before Fletcher Newell picks up on the short ball from Noah Hotham and barges over under the posts. Reihana converts. (Crusaders 12–12 Highlanders)
36 mins – PENALTY HIGHLANDERS: Millar slots from 23 metres after Sevu Reece is penalised for hands in the ruck. (Crusaders 12–15 Highlanders)
37 mins – YELLOW CARD CRUSADERS: Finlay Brewis is shown yellow after a lengthy review for a dangerous cleanout on Tomas Lavanini, making shoulder contact with the back of the Argentine lock’s head.
Half-time: Crusaders 12–15 Highlanders. A fiery opening 40 minutes with the Crusaders’ discipline costing them dearly. Two yellow cards have swung momentum the visitors’ way, though both sides have shown plenty of attacking intent in this physical derby.
46 mins – PENALTY HIGHLANDERS: Millar extends the lead from 40 metres after the Highlanders build sustained pressure from a lineout drive. (Crusaders 12–18 Highlanders)
50 mins – TRY CRUSADERS: Johnny Lee scores on debut! Ethan Blackadder barges through the defensive line with a powerful carry and finds Lee on his inside shoulder. The debutant still has work to do but finishes strongly. Reihana converts. (Crusaders 19–18 Highlanders)
56 mins – TRY CRUSADERS: Lee doubles up! Noah Hotham is held up over the line from the previous phase, but the Crusaders go to the corner and set up the driving maul. It twists towards the touchline and Lee emerges with the ball to crash over. Reihana converts. (Crusaders 26–18 Highlanders)
60 mins – YELLOW CARD CRUSADERS: Chay Fihaki is shown yellow for direct shoulder contact to the head of Cameron Millar after he had thrown a pass. Millar fails his head injury assessment and does not return. The contact is reviewed for a possible red card but stays yellow after officials rule there was a late dip at the point of contact.
68 mins – PENALTY CRUSADERS: Xavier Saifoloi crosses after a brilliant Will Jordan break, but the TMO intervenes for obstruction in the build-up. Reihana slots the resulting penalty from 30 metres. (Crusaders 29–18 Highlanders)
Full-time: Crusaders 29–18 Highlanders
Match report
It was fitting that the last South Island derby at Apollo Projects Stadium in Addington delivered a contest to remember. In front of around 15,000 fans, the Crusaders produced a stirring second-half turnaround to claim the 50th edition of this fierce rivalry, digging deep to flip a bruising encounter that looked to be slipping away from them at the break.
The defending champions entered round five with just one win from their opening four matches, desperately needing a response after a lacklustre defeat to the Blues in Auckland. They had already lost to these same Highlanders in Dunedin in round one, when Cameron Millar’s late penalty secured a memorable 25–23 victory for the visitors. Another defeat would have been a significant blow to their hopes of a top-three finish just five weeks into the season.
What they delivered was a performance built on resilience, character and the emergence of a star in the making — debutant openside flanker Johnny Lee, whose six-minute double after half-time turned the contest on its head.
The early signs were promising for the hosts. Will Jordan lit up the derby inside four minutes with a trademark solo effort, finding a gap with a right-foot step 30 metres out before pinning his ears back. The All Blacks fullback still had plenty of work to do, carrying several Highlanders defenders over the line in a moment of brilliance that sent the Christchurch crowd into raptures. Reihana’s conversion from 15 metres in from the right touchline drifted wide, but the statement had been made.
Perhaps we should have known a fiery encounter was brewing. Earlier in the week, a couple of Crusaders forwards had got stuck into each other at training, with captain David Havili forced to rush in and play peacemaker. The tension spilled onto the field when the hulking Antonio Shalfoon dived on Mitch Dunshea and pinned him to the turf after the Highlanders lock had clattered into halfback Noah Hotham following a clearance kick. The locals howled for blood, demanding referee Jordan Way produce a card, but no action was taken.
The Crusaders’ ill-discipline quickly threatened to derail their evening. With the Highlanders on attack inside the 22, hooker Codie Taylor was shown yellow for a cynical offside, depleting the defensive line at a crucial moment. The visitors made them pay when Caleb Tangitau — fast emerging as an All Blacks wing-in-waiting — burst through the line off a quick tap from Folau Fakatava’s sharp cutout pass. Tangitau drew Jordan before delivering a lovely inside ball to Tanielu Tele’a, who crossed to level the scores.
The Highlanders extended their advantage with a rare break from tighthead prop Angus Ta’avao, who gassed 30 metres into space with surprising pace for a front-rower. He timed his pass perfectly to find Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens on his outside, and the fullback had too much speed for Reihana in the cover defence, strolling over to push the visitors into a 12–5 lead.
Fletcher Newell’s powerful response kept the Crusaders in touch. Braydon Ennor was brought down agonisingly close to the line, but Newell picked up on the short ball from Hotham and dropped his shoulder, burrowing over under the posts with defenders hanging off him. Reihana converted to level the scores at 12–12.
But more discipline woes followed. Sevu Reece was penalised for hands in the ruck, allowing Millar to slot from 23 metres. Then loosehead Finlay Brewis was shown yellow after a lengthy review for a dangerous cleanout on Highlanders debutant Tomas Lavanini, making shoulder contact with the back of the Argentine lock’s head. The Crusaders would head to the sheds trailing 15–12, having lost two front-rowers to the sin bin in the opening 40 minutes.
When Millar slotted another penalty six minutes into the second half, extending the lead to 18–12, the Crusaders were staring down the barrel. But what followed was a statement from their pack.
Enter Lee. The New Zealand Under-20s representative had spent considerable time off the field in the first half due to the yellow cards to the front-rowers, but he made up for lost time in spectacular fashion. First, he combined brilliantly with Ethan Blackadder, who barged through the defensive line with a powerful carry before finding Lee on his inside shoulder. The debutant still had work to do but finished strongly, crashing over to give the Crusaders the lead for the first time since the fourth minute.
Six minutes later, Lee doubled up. Hotham was held up over the line in the previous phase, but the Crusaders went to the corner and set up the driving maul. It twisted towards the touchline and Lee emerged with the ball, crashing over to complete a remarkable six-minute blitz that turned a six-point deficit into an eight-point lead.
Reihana converted both tries as the defending champions piled on 17 unanswered points in a dominant third quarter. The first five-eighth took control brilliantly, adding crucial points from the tee and steering the Crusaders around the park with growing authority, while Leicester Fainga’anuku provided impact off the bench with his powerful carrying.
The drama was not over. Wing Chay Fihaki — celebrating his 50th Crusaders appearance — was shown yellow for direct shoulder contact to the head of Millar after the first five-eighth had thrown a pass. Millar failed his head injury assessment and did not return, while officials reviewed whether Fihaki’s contact warranted a red card. It stayed yellow after a late dip was identified at the point of contact, but it was a let-off for the winger.
Xavier Saifoloi thought he had sealed the derby win when he crossed in the 67th minute after a brilliant Will Jordan break, but the TMO intervened for obstruction in the build-up. Reihana instead slotted the resulting penalty to push the Crusaders out to an 11-point buffer.
To their credit, the Highlanders kept throwing punches right to the end. Timoci Tavatavanawai carried with his usual force, Tangitau remained dangerous whenever space opened up, and they camped themselves deep in Crusaders territory in the closing minutes with Fihaki still in the sin bin. But the home side refused to crack, scrambling desperately and forcing the final error when the ball rolled past Jona Nareki and into touch as the Highlanders went searching for a losing bonus point.
The only downer for the Crusaders was injury to captain David Havili, who trudged off in the 23rd minute with what appeared to be a painful ankle problem. His fitness will be monitored ahead of next week’s trip to Albany to face Moana Pasifika, where the defending champions will look to build momentum with back-to-back wins.
The result sees the Crusaders climb ahead of the Highlanders into seventh on the ladder, while Jamie Joseph’s men return home to Dunedin to prepare for a huge New Zealand derby against the table-topping Hurricanes.
Teams
Crusaders: 15 Will Jordan, 14 Chay Fihaki, 13 Braydon Ennor, 12 David Havili (c), 11 Sevu Reece, 10 Rivez Reihana, 9 Noah Hotham, 8 Christian Lio-Willie, 7 Johnny Lee, 6 Ethan Blackadder, 5 Tahlor Cahill, 4 Antonio Shalfoon, 3 Fletcher Newell, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Finlay Brewis.
Replacements: 16 George Bell, 17 George Bower, 18 Seb Calder, 19 Will Tucker, 20 Xavier Saifoloi, 21 Kyle Preston, 22 Leicester Fainga’anuku, 23 Dallas McLeod.
Highlanders: 15 Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens, 14 Caleb Tangitau, 13 Tanielu Tele’a, 12 Timoci Tavatavanawai (co-c), 11 Jona Nareki, 10 Cameron Millar, 9 Folau Fakatava, 8 Lucas Casey, 7 Sean Withy (co-c), 6 Te Kamaka Howden, 5 Mitch Dunshea, 4 Tomas Lavanini, 3 Angus Ta’avao, 2 Jack Taylor, 1 Ethan de Groot.
Replacements: 16 Soane Vikena, 17 Josh Bartlett, 18 Rohan Wingham, 19 Oli Haig, 20 Nikora Broughton, 21 Veveni Lasaqa, 22 Adam Lennox, 23 Reesjan Pasitoa.
Match details
Crusaders 29 (Tries: Jordan, Newell, Lee 2; Conversions: Reihana 3/4; Penalties: Reihana 1/1)
Highlanders 18 (Tries: Tele’a, Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens; Conversions: Millar 1/2; Penalties: Millar 2/2)
Half-time: 12–15
Venue: Apollo Projects Stadium, Christchurch
Referee: Jordan Way (New Zealand)
