1
Dogged Crusaders down Jaguares in Buenos Aires
By Joe Wright
The Crusaders climbed to the top of the New Zealand conference with a 40-14 win over the Jaguares in Buenos Aires on Saturday.
Two tries apiece for George Bridge and Manasa Mataele helped to ensure the win and a bonus point for the visitors.
Despite struggling with a batch of injuries, the Crusaders took control when Bridge went over twice in the opening 14 minutes, and Mataele's converted try following some swift work at the lineout put them 19-0 up.
Jaguares' frustrations were growing against a dogged and scrappy defensive display, although tries from Joaquin Tuculet and Emiliano Boffelli did offer the home fans some hope, the latter finishing a fine flowing move.
However, Mitch Hunt, Ryan Crotty and Mataele made certain of the victory and the Crusaders' spot on top of the New Zealand standings, while the Jaguares stay bottom of the South African pool.
Trending on RugbyPass
2
All Blacks XV player ratings vs Munster
3
Suaalii strikes awe as Wallabies lose midfielder
4
Scott Robertson responds about handling errors
5
Latest Comments
So you have to be an international coach to have an opinion on rugby?
Go to commentsThere is a lot of this being said at the moment but Marcus Smith did miss a couple of drop goals of his own in the first half. Everything is in hindsight and you’d also need to be a brave coach to not make use of your bench replacements in a test.
NZ tried to resist making replacements in the second test against the Boks this year, and fatigued players just ended up making uncharacteristic errors at the end of the match.
Go to comments