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Another former All Black answers the Crusaders' SOS call

Ryan Crotty. (Photo by Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images)

After the fairytale return of John Afoa to Super Rugby in round 14, the Crusaders have called in further veteran leadership to help stay afloat amid their ever-growing injury crisis.

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Another replacement was needed after All Black David Havili suffered a hamstring injury that could see him done for the season, so the call was made to club legend Ryan Crotty.

Crotty returned to the Crusaders’ environment for Tuesday’s training, four years after retiring from Super Rugby and heading to Japan’s Kubota Spears.

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The Crusaders still have the services of Dallas McLeod and Jack Goodhue to call upon for the No 12 jersey, so Crotty is unlikely to follow in Afoa’s footsteps and be called into the starting XV, or even the reserves.

Still, the experience of 48 Test caps and 150 Super Rugby matches is as fine a supplement as Scott Robertson could ask for when looking to fill the void left by the in-form Havili.

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Havili joins fellow All Blacks Joe Moody, Fletcher Newell, George Bower, Cullen Grace and Sevu Reece on the sidelines. At the same time, U20 New Zealand representatives Noah Hotham, Macca Springer and Taha Kemara have all left the team to prepare for their upcoming World Championship campaign in South Africa.

Crusaders assistant coach James Marshall said the team were awaiting results from a scan of Havili’s hamstring, but admitted: “When you’re limping off like that, it didn’t look too positive.”

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The Crusaders play the Hurricanes in Wellington on Saturday in the final round of the Super Rugby Pacific regular season, the team can secure their second-place finish with even a bonus point loss.

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DarstedlyDan 19 minutes ago
New Zealanders may not understand, but in France Test rugby is the 'B movie'

Italy have a top 14 issue too, that’s true. I doubt SA are overly pleased by that, although it’s countered somewhat by the fact they would expect to thrash them anyway, so perhaps are not that bothered.


The BIL teams are (aside from Ireland) A/B teams - still with many A team players. I would rather the England team touring Argentina be playing the ABs than this French one.


France could have reduced the complaints and the grounds for such if they had still picked the best team from those eligible/available. But they haven’t even done that. This, plus the playing of silly b@ggers with team selection over the three tests is just a big middle finger to the ABs and the NZ rugby public.


One of the key reasons this is an issue is the revenue sharing one. Home teams keep the ticket revenues. If the July tours are devalued to development larks then the crowds will not show up (why go watch teams featuring names you’ve never heard of?). This costs the SH unions. The NH unions on the other hand get the advantage of bums on seats from full strength SH teams touring in November. If the NH doesn’t want to play ball by touring full strength, then pay up and share gate receipts. That would be fair, and would reduce the grounds for complaint from the south. This has been suggested, but the NH unions want their cake and eat it too. And now, apparently, we are not even allowed to complain about it?


Finally - no one is expecting France to do things the way NZ or SA do. We oddly don’t really mind that it probably makes them less successful at RWC than they would otherwise have been. But a bit of willingness to find a solution other than “lump it, we’re French” would go a looonnng way.

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