Former All Blacks halfback Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi will move to the Crusaders for the 2022 Super Rugby season, creating a potential three-way logjam for minutes at halfback.
The Christchurch-based franchise has achieved considerable success in recent seasons with a one-two combination of Mitch Drummond and Bryn Hall sharing time at No.9, but Tahuriorangi's arrival from the Chiefs suggests that jobshare arrangement may be nearing an end.
One day after current international halfback Brad Weber re-signed through the next World Cup, his Chiefs understudy has confirmed he will head south to rekindle his career.
Tahuriorangi played under Crusaders coach Scott Robertson for NZ U20 in 2015 and made his Super Rugby debut for the Hurricanes the following year. He represented the Māori All Blacks against British & Irish Lions in 2017 and became All Black No.1174 against Argentina in 2018.
He made two further test appearances against Japan and Italy, before Weber edged ahead of him on the depth chart and Tahuriorangi has lost further ground since, with the emergence of Finlay Christie and Folau Fakatava.
"I'm really grateful for the opportunity to join a club that has such an awesome track record in Super Rugby and it’s exciting to have the chance to contribute to a team like the Crusaders," he says.
"I worked with Razor a few years back as part of the New Zealand U20 programme, so I’m looking forward to reconnecting with him next season and embracing a fresh challenge in my rugby career."
