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Crusaders - 32 Hurricanes - 34
FULLTIME - What. A. Game. Check out the highlights above.
80 mins - Reece and Jordan combine, 30m down the right hand touch. Penalty Canes!
79 mins - Crusaders on their own 22m.
77 mins - TRY CRUSADERS - Who else but Mo'unga? Weaves his way through midfield and fires a laser wide ball to Reece, who dives over untouched. Conversion from the sideline.... sends it just outside the post.
76 mins - Barrett doesn't find touch from the restart, Crusaders edge to the Canes 22m.
74 mins - Barrett makes no mistake and the Canes have a seven-point buffer.
73 mins - Advantage blown up. This is well within Barrett's range, 35m on a marginal angle. They'll take their time here.
72 mins - Aso on the crash ball, taken at thee Crusaders' 10m. Penalty advantage being played.
70 mins - Goodhue and Strange combine well at hlafway but the final pass is fumbled by Bridge. Canes scrum at halfway.
68 mins - TRY CRUSADERS - Wave after wave from the Crsuaders forwards in a close range assault on the Canes line and it's Quinten Strange who delivers the final blow. Mo'unga lands the conversion. Game on.
67 mins - Sanders off the back of the scrum. They keep it tight, metres away...
64 mins - Mo'unga leaps to nab a bomb at the Canes' 10m, accelerates through a gap and chips ahead, Aso wins the race but he's carried it back into his own in-goal. Crusaders 5m scrum. Huge moment in the game.
62 mins - TRY HURRICANES - Aso draws two, hands off to Umaga-Jensen who had plenty of work to do from 3m out, dragging defenders and spinning to the outside to finish in the corner. Barrett slots a critical conversion from the sideline. (29-20)
61 mins - Barrett finds touch near the Crusaders' 10m. Kirifi crash ball, Scrafton through a half gap. Savea beats one, finds Barrett. 10m out now...
60 mins - Crusaders back on the attack, edge to the Canes 22m. Defensive penalty, great work by Kirifi to win that one at the breakdown.
58 mins - Penalty Canes. Barrett lines up a shot, 44m on the angle....nails it. Points well and truly against the run of play for the Canes.
56 mins - Crusaders earn a scrum penalty.
55 mins - Perenara with a stone cold fumble at the back of the ruck. Crusaders off the hook, scrum at their own 22m.
54 mins - Canes feed a scrum at their own 22m. Penalty at the ensuing ruck, Perenara milks it well. Canes lineout at the Saders 22m.
53 mins - Big blow for the Canes, as Laumape walks reluctantly to the sidelines after injuring his arm. Aso into the action.
52 mins - Reece with room to move. Mo'unga in support, weaving in and out of defenders but his flick pass to Goodhue goes to ground.
51 mins - Fidow with a clever turnover. Perenara with a savvy boxkick, pins the Crusaders by their own corner post for the lineout.
50 mins - Beautiful offload from Whitelock to Reece. Bridge grubbers, comfortbaly cleaned up by Umaga-Jensen.
48 mins - Saders trying to run it out of their own red zone. Offside against the Canes. Mo'unga finds touch at the Canes' 10m.
46 mins - 11 phases deep now, penalty advantage blown up for the Crusaders. This should be a straightforward three for Mo'unga, and indeed it is.
44 mins - Mo'unga with the break, finds Bridge. Sanders is into the clear, links with Reece. Crusaders 22m out.
43 mins - Jordan sets Taylor away with some space on the right edge. Moody rumbles to halfway.
42 mins - Handy attacking lineout for the Canes, but the Aumua feed is crooked. Crusaders scrum 30m from their line.
41 mins - Crusaders receive to get the second stanza started.
Second half underway...
HALFTIME
40 mins - Crusaders offside. Barrett will look to the posts here. 33m, essentially in front... hits it at the halftime hooter.
39 mins - Barrett launches another spiralling bomb, Mo'unga does well to reel it in. Hall with a box kick, Barrett comes forward aggressively to take it, Aumua bulldozes past the 10m.
37 mins - Laumape with a head of steam, bumps off one and the Canes edge to the Crusaders 22m...
35 mins - TRY HURRICANES - Sparked by a bullocking run down the touchline from Aumua, they swing it to the right, Barrett fires a pinpoint pass to hit a bursting Goosen on the chest and sprints 22m for his second try of the game. This is an absolute belter of a game, so far. Barrett can't convert.
34 mins - Canes work to the Crusaders' 10m.
31 mins - TRY CRUSADERS - Reece breaks through the fringe of the ruck, searching for support. Flings a huge wide ball looking for a bursting Bridge, who only manages to get a toe to it, but it ends in a perfectly weighted grubber for the wing to pounce on to score. That was nuts.
28 mins - Reece fumbles the bomb, Aumua swoops and wins the turnover for the Canes. Penalty Canes. Barrett chooses to take the shot, 35m on a slight angle...nails it.
27 mins - Jordan traps Barrett right by his corner post with a smart kick, but the fullback does well to recycle. Canes clear to their 10, then steal the lineout.
23 mins - TRY HURRICANES - Set play swinging to the right, nice interplay on the short pass from Laumape to Umaga-Jensen, who bursts through and finds Goosen on his outside to score. Conversion is over.
22 mins - Umaga-Jensen with a powerful run, dragged down 5m short.
21 mins - Taylor gets pinged for baulking, Canes awarded a free kick. Barrett hoofs up a bomb, awkward bounce for Jordan and the Canes have the ball, 20m out.
19 mins - Crusaders with a big shove at the scrum. Penalty earned. Mo'unga finds touch at the Canes' 10m.
17 mins - TRY CRUSADERS - Goodhue at first receiver, draws two defenders and finds Mo'unga on the loop, who accelerates through the line and reaches out to score. Lovely set play. Conversion is an easy one.
15 mins - Crusaders work past halfway. Shoulder charge penalty against the Canes. Crusaders opt for the lineout, 10m from the Cane's line.
14 mins - Reece with space at first receiver, links with Mo'unga. Loose pass, but back we go 25m for the penalty. Mo'unga doesn't find touch, Barrett clears.
13 mins - Late call from the touch judge, knock-on Canes. Crusaders will feed the scrum on their own 10m.
10 mins - Penalty advantage blown up for the Crusaders. Mo'unga calls for the kicking tee....40m dead in front, and it's straight and true.
9 mins - Jordan runs a kick back into Canes terrirtory. Sanders thorugh a gap, throws a speculator offload and the Canes clear, but only as far as their own 10m. Poor effort from Barrett.
8 mins - Laumape crash ball, makes good metres on the linebreak. Knock on called, penalty advantage cashed in. Barrett will have a shot from 22m out, on a slight angle....over it sails. (Canes 3-0)
6 mins - Savea with a rampaging run off the back of the scrum, bumps Bryn Hall back to Burnside. Penalty Canes, Barrett finds touch near the Crusaders 22m.
4 mins - Great line speed from the Canes defensively, force a fumble from Sanders. Scrum at their own 22m.
3 mins - Jordan makes a superb take under another high ball. Mo'unga skips away from the tackle, looks to set his outsides away. Penalty at the ruck, Crusaders will throw a lineout at the Canes' 22m.
2 mins - Perenara box kick, Bridge up to the task. Hall returns fire, Canes work towards halfway.
1 min - Crusaders kick off, and there's a penalty for the Canes at the first ruck of the game. Barrett off the side of the boot, 50m lineout.
We're underway...
7:02pm - Cold but clear night in Christchurch, after a belter of a day. Here come the two sides now.
Betting odds:
Crusaders - $1.19 Hurricanes - $4.30
Pre-match banter
Jordan returns to fullback for Crusaders
By Brad Lewis
Electric Will Jordan is back at fullback for the Crusaders' Saturday night showdown against the in-form Hurricanes.
Jordan replaces David Havili, who won't be seen in red and black again this season, after breaking his thumb against the Blues this month.
Jordan has been the breakout star of Super Rugby Aotearoa, scoring five tries to top the standings.
The Crusaders can inch towards claiming the inaugural championship with victory at Orangetheory stadium. They currently sit five points clear of the Blues with a game in hand.
Coach Scott Robertson has largely stuck with the side that turned over the Blues, although Fetuli Paea will debut in the No.13 jersey, replacing a resting Braydon Ennor.
Bryn Hall keeps his spot behind the Crusaders scrum, edging out Mitchell Drummond, while Whetu Douglas, Tom Christie and Tom Sanders form an excellent back row.
One-test All Black Brett Cameron will start off the bench, as well as barnstorming winger Leicester Fainga'anuku.
