Watch: Crusaders wing George Bridge shows amazing determination to score 'freakish' try
The Crusaders are best known for their clinical ability to take advantage of the many try-scoring opportunities they regularly create but their first try on Saturday night was something else altogether.
Whether it's lineout drives, countless phases close to the try line or perfectly executed set-pieces, the Crusaders are typically experts at scoring when they need to score and accumulating points at almost every opportunity they have.
The Hurricanes marched out to an early lead courtesy of some strong running from Peter Umaga-Jensen but shortly before halftime, the Crusaders struck back in the cold.
New midfielder Fetuli Paea carted the ball up from halfway before dangerman Sevu Reece exchanged passes with halfback Bryn Hall then set out to cause some havoc amongst the Hurricanes' ranks.
Reece broke down the middle of the park into the Hurricanes' 22 then spiralled a one-handed pass out towards the left wing where George Bridge was chasing in support. The ball found turf and then Bridge's boot found the ball, propelling it into the Hurricanes' in-goal.
While there were plenty of Hurricanes players lying in wait, they weren't able to react to the spinning rugby ball and Bridge chased through to dive on the pill and score.
Unsurprisingly, Twitter exploded following the try.
In a backline containing the likes of Reece, Will Jordan and Richie Mo'unga, Bridge sometimes slips under the radar due to his relatively more subtle efforts but tonight's score will have sent a hearty reminder around the catchy that he's equally as capable of X-factor plays as the other outside backs scattered around New Zealand.
A late try to Wes Goosen gave the Hurricanes a 21-17 lead heading into the halftime break.
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I think England obviously need to train alot more to fix their defense. Time together working to ensure each defender takes the right man is paramount or we're going to see the same amount of tries and losses. Then what? Sack the coach? What a joke that would be. The other fix is being accurate with your basics. England were sloppy to excess, dropped balls in the midfield. Charged down boxkicks, failed restarts. They need to carry out their basic skills accurately. This is a domestic club training responsibility. England should not be teaching their players catching skills. If the clubs are not spending time with skills training then the players need to step up and do it on their own time. There is no excuse for sloppy play at Test match level. They won't win squat if they don't aspire to be the best. Lastly we have the scrum which should be a strength of England but its flakey as. Okay its year one of the world cup cycle and you'd rather have these issues now that 2026 / 27 but we have alot to fix and we also have a media who won't give Borthwick the time he needs to fix them. That paragon of rugby Ugo Monye is already screaming for Borthwick's head. 14 caps and two tries and apparently he's the rugby media mesiah... ...This is where you say he's not the mesiah, he's a very naughty boy.
Go to commentsBen Smith your a biased against the Springboks -making it so obvious as a journalist makes you totally inadequate and not worthy of being taken seriously.
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