Coach Scott Robertson was justifiably content after his Crusaders' full-throttle victory over the Blues in Christchurch on Saturday.
The contest between the two old rivals was played at genuine test match intensity, with two elite defences squaring off in an absorbing battle of wills where the 15-3 scoreline wasn't a fair reflection of the locals' dominance.
In the end, two tries and a clean line to the Crusaders were the difference, leaving Robertson pleased with his team's day at their office - a sold-out AMI Stadium.
The result continued the Crusaders' dominance against their northern adversaries, who they've now beaten in 17 of their past 18 meetings.
"Hugely satisfying," said Robertson after the game. "The effort was incredible.
"I've been pretty obsessed all week about making sure we put a good performance out on both sides of the ball and I think we did that.
"I put an emphasis on enjoying this week and, as soon as we knew we had a full house, making sure we had a crowd that were proud of us.
"I'm sure they were."
Defence was the winner on the day at Christchurch, in an arm wrestle that was scant on entertainment but provided plenty for the purists.
The hosts enjoyed significant advantages in both territory (68 percent) and possession (64 percent), leaving Robertson ruing some missed opportunities while paying tribute to a staunch Blues tackling effort.
"To be fair, they defended extremely well - to have that many tackles and us not to get over.
"They were heroic. They've gone deep to the well defensively and kept us to two tries."
Robertson singled out his captain Scott Barrett and Leicester Fainga'anuku for their performances, with the latter providing one of his team's tries with a spectacular diving effort in the corner.
In hindsight, the try shouldn't have counted, with the referees missing a clear knock-on from Crusaders prop Tamaiti Williams in the build up. The referees went upstairs to review a dangerous tackle that resulted in captain Blues Dalton Papali'i being upgraded to a red card, which took the attention away from the fumble.
Blues coach Leon MacDonald included the incident in his list of "little things that didn't go our way" but was philosophical about its impact on the match.
"We all saw that, but it is what it is," said MacDonald.
"That's what happens when you're under pressure… I suppose it would've been called if Dalton didn't make a head-high tackle and that's where the focus went, and so it should've."
MacDonald doubled down on Robertson's praise for the Crusaders' "outstanding" defensive work - particularly at the breakdown - which forced his tryless side into some questionable decision-making, but was sure to save some adulation for his own team's tackling.
"They chucked a lot at us early on, and I thought we stood up to that challenge. I was just waiting for our opportunity to attack.
"Probably rue a few decisions to kick when we probably should have kept that ball, which really fed into what they wanted to do.
"They didn't miss any tackles tonight and if they're not missing tackles, then you have to try and find space, and we probably weren't quite good enough on that front."
While there's no official diagnosis yet, Robertson said he expects to be without Joe Moody for at least the next couple of weeks, after the prop left the game with an ankle sprain.
Lock Quinten Strange was also forced off the field due to a hand issue, which will undergo further tests to determine its severity.
In the Blues' casualty ward, lock Sam Darry's season is likely over, after suffering a broken arm.
