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'I'm smashing my TV': Former All Black unhappy with Crusaders coach Robertson
By Sam Smith
Former All Black prop Neemia Tialata has taken exception with Crusaders coach Scott Robertson, with a public plea to stop his post-match antics following the Crusaders 21-7 win over the Blues in the Super Rugby Pacific final.
The Crusaders coach is famous for his celebratory breakdancing routine which he has been brought out whenever the Crusaders claim a title.
However, Tialata took to Twitter to voice his opinion and asked for an end to the ritual for 'the sake of rugby'.
"No breakdance please for the sake of rugby.... NO!," the 43-test All Black wrote.
"Let your boys enjoy the win! I'm smashing my tv if he does."
Robertson proceeded to dance on the turf of Eden Park after the Crusaders claimed their sixth title in six years under the super coach.
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Springboks Director of Rugby Rassie Erasmus also took to Twitter to praise Robertson's effort, sharing adulation for the way that the Crusaders coach expresses himself after success.
In his post-match press conference, Robertson said he was 'extremely proud' of his Crusaders side who replicated the feats of the 1998 side by beating the Blues at a 'special' Eden Park in the final.
"Extremely proud. Through the week we dug pretty deep into what it takes to win a championship and reflected on a lot of the other teams that had done it and why," he said.
"That connected us probably into how hard it was going to be. There was a lot of messages from (past) players, coaches and captains that just reflected that probably first 50 minutes.
"It is special to win at the Garden. We talked about it. It's very hard for any team to win here, - any team playing the All Blacks or the Blues.
"It's a pretty special place and we had to go to a higher level if we wanted to [get the win] and step up, and we did that."
Of the five titles the Crusaders had won under Robertson previously, just one had been won away from home against the Lions in Johannesberg.
Whilst their sixth title at Eden Park was special, it couldn't be compared to their victory at Ellis Park due to the differing circumstances.
"Yeah we've done it a few times [winning the competition] but Ellis Park... Take nothing away from this but I think because it was the first, it was unique," he said of the team's 2017 championship.
"That was pretty special. You were away from home. There's a few more, where the air is thin and you've got a lot of different elements.
"But just this group and led by some great men and a great captain."
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I guess the other option would be to start ALB, he's looked good in the 12 so far when he starts and sets up those outside him. But that would mean putting the vice captain on the bench, which is unlikely. Another option would be to drop Reiko to the bench and play Proctor, though he's gone home so that's not going to happen either.
Both of those players just offer more of the soft distribution skills good centres learn from playing their careers there. Unfortunately that's what's lacking with the current combo.
Go to commentsWhatever let's see if this load of waffle is still valid in 2 years time. ABs will rise we have a lot of new talent coming through. The NPC was the highest standard for years. The game is changing to suit the fast pace we like to play. We get to play the Springboks more, including the franchises, which will make us better! Overall I am optimistic. I will add having watched the England game multiple times we made most of the play. England are an awesome physical team, but you can expect the All Blacks to get better and better at executing the chances. It could easily have been 5 tries to one instead of 3 to 1.
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