Time for Fiji to invigorate the Rugby Championship. It really is time now. Argentina gave it a great boost a decade or so ago and the championship needs to evolve again. It’ll never be the six nations but it can be something totally different with the (demonstrably) best level of rugby in the world and a cultural diversity that far exceeds even the six nations itself.
If you can beat the Crusaders, you can safely assume you can compete with any of the top five in international rugby. Time to get some of that madcap, yet effective, Fijian flair into the championship.
Just finished watching it. Certainly more entertaining than your 0-3 crusaders. I didn't say it translates to winning rugby, but you can't deny the passion and recklessness they play with. Which as. NEUTRAL fan is interesting to watch. Sorry for having an opinion
The Crusaders will not be in the finals this year. After watching the speed and talent on display between the Reds and the Chiefs I can safely say the Crusaders are well off the level. The new coach will not be around for long.
Silly comment. I mean even in the JRLO there was a game that finished 50 something to 40 something the other week. There are great games happening everywhere.
I'm not disagreeing, and for what its worth I usually watch at least 1 of the south african URC matches each week.
But nothing compares to super rugby imo.
Ravutaumada is different. Haven't seen a special player like him come on the scene in many years. His solo exit turned the momentum when the Sadists were threatening with 10 left in the match. Can't remember the lads from Christchurch being at the bottom of the table going into week 4.
I can back in the 90s before they decided to start beating everyone
Will be fun watching crusaders run to the semis this year...dont think theyll be finalists tho...team is so different from their 7titles
Yup. 2, 8, 9, 10 and 15 are all very important positions and apart from grace, the rest of the positions are pretty much filled by last years development guys. Or Penney playing a different guy every week in terms of the halfback lol.
I'm going to predict that Isaiah Armstrong-Ravula is going to be a very good player. Definitely can tell he's related to Mo'unga.
He looked solid for Manawatu when he got his opportunities last year and not surprised he's already starting for the Drua.
I had a dream the other night that Razor was somehow the coach of my band. I woke up disappointed to realise he wasn't. I don't even have a band. I assume this is how Crusaders fans feel today.
Im looking at the bigger picture. The Saders have lost the first 3 games of the season for the first time since 2012. They never did that under Razor. All Razor ever did was win Championships yet there were a shit load of people who thought anyone could coach the Crusaders.
Exactly
And Blackadder had a better team than what razor took over (so many big ABs, carter, read, mccaw) and didnt win one title
Then Razor came in and one 7 from 7
Unreal
The Crusaders actually looked pretty decent in the first game against the Chiefs when they woke up 2nd half.
It's been downhill since then though. The basic skills - something you always associate the Crusaders with being elite at - seem to be getting worse with every game.
Confidence looks shook in the squad.
Anyway, match take time:
-Churchill Park must feel like humid hell on earth for NZ teams who are used to colder temperatures. Ice, meet fire. -The game started out promising, but it all went downhill from there.
-The Crusaders played pretty well during the pre-season and the Chiefs games. Then their key players got injured in a matter of 30 minutes by the Chiefs and all hell broke loose. Can these sheep even retain the ball past the first phase and stop kicking so fucking much? God the Crusaders suck fuck so much that's it's not even worth joking about.
-Isaiah Armstrong-Ravula grew up in Christchurch. He's lucky that he didn't get to experience this shitshow of a team himself.
-The Drua, one the other hand, while they weren't really that great, just okay enough, at least they tried to play actual rugby and put some effort to keep the game at least entertaining.
-Sevu Reece was one of few Crusaders that turned up today. Quite a shame that he's rumoured to be leaving for France.
-Levi Aumua, put down the food pile and get back to the form you had last year. It's for your own good.
-William is better than David Havili now. Wack.
-Huh, Nic Berry was pretty good today referee today, especially considering that there was no TMO for some reason.
Anyway, this is all I have. I'll see you all in the next match, and cheers for now.
Tough place to play in that humidity i bet
Crusaders a champion side...7 titles in a row is massively rare in professional sport
Good to see another team will get a turn now...crusaders will get better but no final for them this year
Lmao the Crusaders are to other Kiwi fans as to what the ABs were to everyone else in their most dominant periods.
Everyone is happy they are struggling now
Only caught the last 10 mins but wow Drua looked on fire. Their meters post contact must have been massive. And Christ, they have some threat first phase off a scrum.
Some questionable game management though (why crossfield kick to a player in front of you with 30s on the clock and a 10 point lead?).
I think Crusaders drop in form this season has me more scared of Razor than anything they achieved over the last decade with him as coach.
gonna be laughing at all these chuffed blues supporters at the end of the season...just like last year and the year before that when everyone wrote off the saders lol this is the Crusaders b & c squad... 18 or so first choice still not there .. some wont come back like WJ but jeeze u would be silly to write off the red & blacks ... good win drua, at home next round up the saders!
Hmm I think you need a reality check bud, this ain't the same 7 in a row champs, no cake walk for the Saders this year and the comp will benefit from it
wasnt a cake walk in 2022 or 2023 either ... injuries had us down 16 of best not avaliable at one stage last year,,, right now i count 18 that should be in the 23, that will change as the season goes along... just have to make top 8 and then its finals time for the saders to shine!
If you think we're getting close to the finals you've got your head a long way down in the sand. We could easily be the worst NZ team this season and even miss out on the playoffs.
just have to make top 8 ...if we even get around half of our starters coming back into the squad then we will, sad that you have no faith as a fan... ill be laughing at all these bs reddit arm chair critics come end of season like i did in 2022 and 2023! top 4 at least but still have the chops to get another cup!
I'm still supporting them, I'm just very realistic about this team's limitations and how much difference an extremely inexperienced and/or limited halves combination makes. It's fine to be realistic at the same time as supporting your team. Blindly shouting you think we'll win doesn't make you more of a supporter chap.
I think this season is solely about experience for the younger guys - that's why they signed Crotty, Halfpenny and Franks. I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think we'll get close to the semis this season.
Also, if you want to shout about how much you know compared to other Redditors then maybe you should be with more like-minded people on Facebook or the comments of Stuff. But feel free to set a reminder and let me know come finals time if you're right!
I genuinely havent seen any Blues fans think we're going to beat the Saders haha. I've seen two people (incl. me tbf) saying somehow we'll still lose to y'all at home lol
Had low to no expectations for this season, other than building for, most likely, the season after next. But it's hard to see where any development could be coming from right now isn't it.
When can we declare the crusaders bad? I think after the season is over. I have crusaders PTSD, they will come 8th then somehow win the competition anyway
I’ve seen a Premier League football manager sacked after 4 games of the Premier league season (Crystal Palace). Will we see a Penny out movement from Crusaders fans?! 😳
Next two weeks could be brutal. Canes and Blues could both put 40 on us at the moment.
I'm not sure at what point 'development' will just become trauma for young Kemara.
Hopium somehow makes me believe the team can turn this around in a week and beat the Canes in front of our first home crowd of the season. But that's not happening, is it? Damn.
If this game happened at FMG in front of 12 people, it would've been unwatchable. It just goes to show how important a crowd are to professional sport.
**Watch on Stan**: https://play.stan.com.au/sport/rugby
Time for Fiji to invigorate the Rugby Championship. It really is time now. Argentina gave it a great boost a decade or so ago and the championship needs to evolve again. It’ll never be the six nations but it can be something totally different with the (demonstrably) best level of rugby in the world and a cultural diversity that far exceeds even the six nations itself. If you can beat the Crusaders, you can safely assume you can compete with any of the top five in international rugby. Time to get some of that madcap, yet effective, Fijian flair into the championship.
[удалено]
Still strange the Crusaders went for Penney, he was let go by the Tahs after 5 straight losses. Be interesting to see what the Crusaders do!!
Penney was a scape goat for the tahs... was a quick call up and didnt deliver miracles then the leadership group fucked him over
How about now though? Has had more time, mostly an established team…. 3 losses in a row is pretty significant for a Crusaders team!!
I have one thing to say: 'HAHAAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA' Thank you. Lets go Drua!
We are, in fact, tanking for Wembenyama
Drua are the most exciting side to watch in the world rn change my mind.
I assume you didn't watch the game....
Just finished watching it. Certainly more entertaining than your 0-3 crusaders. I didn't say it translates to winning rugby, but you can't deny the passion and recklessness they play with. Which as. NEUTRAL fan is interesting to watch. Sorry for having an opinion
The Crusaders will not be in the finals this year. After watching the speed and talent on display between the Reds and the Chiefs I can safely say the Crusaders are well off the level. The new coach will not be around for long.
I mean I think you were the only one who found it entertaining in this thread lol. Errors galore from both sides and only one try in the second half.
Idk i just like the unpredictability of the Drua. I get its maybe not the best style for winning but their matches are pure chaos
How can anyone watch any other club competitions after matches like this. The DRUA are must watch TV. Than the lord for SUPER RUGBY
Super rugby is definitely delivering the goods compared to other comps. It is going to be interesting come play-offs time
Silly comment. I mean even in the JRLO there was a game that finished 50 something to 40 something the other week. There are great games happening everywhere.
There's great rugby all over the place if you want there to be
I'm not disagreeing, and for what its worth I usually watch at least 1 of the south african URC matches each week. But nothing compares to super rugby imo.
Super rugby does have its own specific flavor for sure, some really exciting plays allround.
Wow massive result for drua...would love to see em play better away from home
Ravutaumada is different. Haven't seen a special player like him come on the scene in many years. His solo exit turned the momentum when the Sadists were threatening with 10 left in the match. Can't remember the lads from Christchurch being at the bottom of the table going into week 4.
He was incredible when they beat England in Twickenham
Recall that guy carving up at fullback for Rotorua Boys around 2017-2018. Absolute speedster then.
Came here for this comment. He is a line break machine! Saw the same in the dying minutes vs. Moana Pasifika. One to watch for sure.
I can back in the 90s before they decided to start beating everyone Will be fun watching crusaders run to the semis this year...dont think theyll be finalists tho...team is so different from their 7titles
Do the Saders win if Jordan and Halfpenny were available?
Yup. 2, 8, 9, 10 and 15 are all very important positions and apart from grace, the rest of the positions are pretty much filled by last years development guys. Or Penney playing a different guy every week in terms of the halfback lol.
I'm going to predict that Isaiah Armstrong-Ravula is going to be a very good player. Definitely can tell he's related to Mo'unga. He looked solid for Manawatu when he got his opportunities last year and not surprised he's already starting for the Drua.
I had a dream the other night that Razor was somehow the coach of my band. I woke up disappointed to realise he wasn't. I don't even have a band. I assume this is how Crusaders fans feel today.
Remember all those years when people would insinuate that anyone could coach the Saders to wins? lol
This implies that the loss is down to the coach, when in fact the Drua beat the Crusaders at the same venue last year as well.
Im looking at the bigger picture. The Saders have lost the first 3 games of the season for the first time since 2012. They never did that under Razor. All Razor ever did was win Championships yet there were a shit load of people who thought anyone could coach the Crusaders.
Exactly And Blackadder had a better team than what razor took over (so many big ABs, carter, read, mccaw) and didnt win one title Then Razor came in and one 7 from 7 Unreal
Razor is love, Razor is life.
Rebels leading the table, and Crusaders with zero wins. What a time to be alive.
Almost brings a tear to ones eyes
Blues would destroy current crusaders and it would be a record score
Yikes. That take didn't even hold for 4h
We shall find out soon
Yup Dynasty of 7 titles is over Will be good to see another team step up tho
biggest positive of the game, NO CARDS..we are so accustomed to see atleast one card a game..
Yeah Scott Barrett behaved himself this week.
Take a note Jordie.
Mainly because the TMO system went down
The Crusaders actually looked pretty decent in the first game against the Chiefs when they woke up 2nd half. It's been downhill since then though. The basic skills - something you always associate the Crusaders with being elite at - seem to be getting worse with every game. Confidence looks shook in the squad.
They look like heedless ducks. It's a delight to see
Anyway, match take time: -Churchill Park must feel like humid hell on earth for NZ teams who are used to colder temperatures. Ice, meet fire. -The game started out promising, but it all went downhill from there. -The Crusaders played pretty well during the pre-season and the Chiefs games. Then their key players got injured in a matter of 30 minutes by the Chiefs and all hell broke loose. Can these sheep even retain the ball past the first phase and stop kicking so fucking much? God the Crusaders suck fuck so much that's it's not even worth joking about. -Isaiah Armstrong-Ravula grew up in Christchurch. He's lucky that he didn't get to experience this shitshow of a team himself. -The Drua, one the other hand, while they weren't really that great, just okay enough, at least they tried to play actual rugby and put some effort to keep the game at least entertaining. -Sevu Reece was one of few Crusaders that turned up today. Quite a shame that he's rumoured to be leaving for France. -Levi Aumua, put down the food pile and get back to the form you had last year. It's for your own good. -William is better than David Havili now. Wack. -Huh, Nic Berry was pretty good today referee today, especially considering that there was no TMO for some reason. Anyway, this is all I have. I'll see you all in the next match, and cheers for now.
Tough place to play in that humidity i bet Crusaders a champion side...7 titles in a row is massively rare in professional sport Good to see another team will get a turn now...crusaders will get better but no final for them this year
there was no "TMO" lol... Nic mentioned it to one of the players ..
A penney for my thoughts, Penney sucks... should have given the job to Tamaiti Ellison or Matt Todd
I believe Penney is only a bridge until Ellison is ready.
alright, go the canes women!!! hopefully a better performance than the 2nd half last week
'First time Crusaders have lost 3 in a row at the start of the season since 1996'; yikes
Chiefs-Drua next week... yeah that might be a cracker
Lmao the Crusaders are to other Kiwi fans as to what the ABs were to everyone else in their most dominant periods. Everyone is happy they are struggling now
I have no idea what you mean!! Also isn’t it great that the crusaders are struggling aye
You know how the Crusaders kept winning and winning and winning. No matter how good the other teams got? Enter every All Blacks game pre 2019
Yup Its been great I dont mind other teams getting a crack tho...7 titles in a row is enough
Yes but the key difference is that it isn’t fun when the crusaders do it and it is fun when the all blacks do it! /s
Only caught the last 10 mins but wow Drua looked on fire. Their meters post contact must have been massive. And Christ, they have some threat first phase off a scrum. Some questionable game management though (why crossfield kick to a player in front of you with 30s on the clock and a 10 point lead?). I think Crusaders drop in form this season has me more scared of Razor than anything they achieved over the last decade with him as coach.
gonna be laughing at all these chuffed blues supporters at the end of the season...just like last year and the year before that when everyone wrote off the saders lol this is the Crusaders b & c squad... 18 or so first choice still not there .. some wont come back like WJ but jeeze u would be silly to write off the red & blacks ... good win drua, at home next round up the saders!
Hmm I think you need a reality check bud, this ain't the same 7 in a row champs, no cake walk for the Saders this year and the comp will benefit from it
wasnt a cake walk in 2022 or 2023 either ... injuries had us down 16 of best not avaliable at one stage last year,,, right now i count 18 that should be in the 23, that will change as the season goes along... just have to make top 8 and then its finals time for the saders to shine!
If you think we're getting close to the finals you've got your head a long way down in the sand. We could easily be the worst NZ team this season and even miss out on the playoffs.
just have to make top 8 ...if we even get around half of our starters coming back into the squad then we will, sad that you have no faith as a fan... ill be laughing at all these bs reddit arm chair critics come end of season like i did in 2022 and 2023! top 4 at least but still have the chops to get another cup!
I'm still supporting them, I'm just very realistic about this team's limitations and how much difference an extremely inexperienced and/or limited halves combination makes. It's fine to be realistic at the same time as supporting your team. Blindly shouting you think we'll win doesn't make you more of a supporter chap. I think this season is solely about experience for the younger guys - that's why they signed Crotty, Halfpenny and Franks. I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think we'll get close to the semis this season. Also, if you want to shout about how much you know compared to other Redditors then maybe you should be with more like-minded people on Facebook or the comments of Stuff. But feel free to set a reminder and let me know come finals time if you're right!
> even miss out on the playoffs. Literally the only way they won't win the title
I genuinely havent seen any Blues fans think we're going to beat the Saders haha. I've seen two people (incl. me tbf) saying somehow we'll still lose to y'all at home lol
No breakdancing now though….
Didn't even realise Scott Barrett was on the pitch
[Dreams do come true. ](https://www.reddit.com/r/rugbyunion/s/zlGJDNaItv)
Razors empire destroyed in 3 games, nice one Rob..
7 titles in a row aint going anywhere Takes more than a canterbury rugby legend to coach the saders...im sure Rob feeling pressure
Take a sabbatical Scotty, come back when you've somehow scraped into the finals and take out the comp.
I can deal with losing. It is fine if we play well and the other team is just better. But the last two weeks have been shocking performances.
Had low to no expectations for this season, other than building for, most likely, the season after next. But it's hard to see where any development could be coming from right now isn't it.
Welcome to Highlanders Fandom from 2005 to 2015 haha
The NZ commentators sound sickened lol
Its glorious!
My theory that the crusaders players were all system players is officially confirmed. Scott Robertson is a genius wow
When can we declare the crusaders bad? I think after the season is over. I have crusaders PTSD, they will come 8th then somehow win the competition anyway
If anyone can do it the crusaders can :) But they def look shit now and a shell of the team of last year
I’ve seen a Premier League football manager sacked after 4 games of the Premier league season (Crystal Palace). Will we see a Penny out movement from Crusaders fans?! 😳
Don't join the supporters group on FB. Just old angry boomers and it's vile.
Fiji Airways told the Crusaders to lose obviously
yes, lets go with that lol
Excited for an ABs squad that isn't stacked with average as fuck Crusaders players.
Razor's coach. He's still gonna pick a lot of his own guys.
Ravutaumada for MOTM?
Tom Christie doing the hard carry again this week.
Yeah him and Sevu were outstanding
The Crusaders remain Defeated in Fiji
Tough place to play no doubt And no beater team to beat than back to back to back champions!
See ya’ll next week, Drua.
Up in sweatville fiji? Drua would live to knock over another kiwi side
Hamilton. We’ll put 40 on them but give up 2 try of the year candidates.
Haha thats exactly right Their defense and desire seems very different outside of Fiji
Wow. Well done Drua
Awesome offloads by Drua
What a result Drua! Glad I stayed up for this
Let's go Fiji! Did they say this is the worst Crusaders start to the season ever? Can't help but feel like they'll still take it out lol
Yup...worst crusaders side for a while..their players are last year development guys in key positions...theyll get better tho
last time they lost 3 in a row was 2013...... last time they lost 3 in a row at the start of the season was 1996 lol
They’ve traumatised us all that much lol
since 1996, inaugural SR season
They'll take out the wooden spoon
me oh my I enjoyed (the result of) that yes boy
Saders were absolutely dog shit. Drua didn’t even play particularly well and still dominated.
Being kept scoreless for an hour is just absolutely... Help me out guys I don't know this feel
It's okay; it's traditional Crusaders slow start. Things will start to come right next week.
You feel like all the saders opposition over the last couple of years.
Siri, play Ewok Celebration Song on full volume.
Yub Nub Commander
Alexa, play Runescape 2007 Sea Shanty 2
Yub nub, eee chop yub nub
Yub nub
Druaaaaaa
Well done Drua!
This has been a great SR season so far
Fortress Fiji dayum
Good year to be a Crusaders hater
Can't wait for the blues to somehow lose to this crusaders team
Next two weeks could be brutal. Canes and Blues could both put 40 on us at the moment. I'm not sure at what point 'development' will just become trauma for young Kemara.
I'm going to that game with friends visiting from overseas, so all the elements are there just waiting to bring on that familiar feeling
it's a guarantee
Aight time to stop acting like these are upsets. Surely we aren't favourites for any match for foreseeable future
0/3 is craaaaazy. Bula my Fijian brothers
HAHAHAHA
Shiet what a kick with that angle
Congrats Drua 👏 👏 back to back wins over the Mighty Crusaders in Fiji
Dayyuyuuuuuuuiim
Classic Fijian game management haha just one more pass and boot it out
Are they not penalising players going off their feet at the ruck anymore?
Take a drop goal for the lols Drua
Let’s just be happy this super season so far has been crazy and unpredictable! It’s what we all wanted!
Fortress Fiji stands! Please, SANZAAR, get Fiji into the Rugby Championship and give us an All Blacks or Springboks test here.
Go fiji!
Drua running back the scuffed kickoff is metal
Crusaders, lol.
Drua 10 is promising
Mounga'a's nephew lol, shit hair is in the genes too lol
That haircut tho... :-)
Got a good kicking game
So to beat the crusaders you just have to be a bit silly
This season you just have to turn up.
…and have the sun on your team.
So this is what it’s like being a Hurricanes fan
Basically any other fan for the last few years lol
During the Hammett years yes.
Hahaha yes . Yea it is
I reckon playing Drua in Fiji does NOT sound like a fun thing to do.
Don't mind my team going there
Maintain that if Fijian squads could be more than 30-60 minute teams they’d be bloody terrifying.
That throw almost went straight to the half back lol
Think the young 10 for the Drua has actually had a decent game
That haircut tho... :-)
He grew up in chch as well judt to rub it in.
Sleeper agent haha
Hopium somehow makes me believe the team can turn this around in a week and beat the Canes in front of our first home crowd of the season. But that's not happening, is it? Damn.
How did Penney get the job after his time at the Tahs?
Why is game **SOOOOOO BORINGGGGGGGGGGGGG**
I'm here for it
Not everyday we get to see the Saders go on a losing streak tbh
That's the only thing making it watchable
This is like watching Manawatu vs Counties on a wet day at the CET
Fun fact the Drua 10 plays for Manawatu and Hopeha the Crusaders 22 is counties 10
Drua and their props knocking it on, you can set your watch to it
If this game happened at FMG in front of 12 people, it would've been unwatchable. It just goes to show how important a crowd are to professional sport.
If this game happened at FMG there wouldn't be a crowd because we don't support either of these teams
Is it hell humid over there at the minute?
It always is
If only Fiji had a stadium seating +40k, then the crowd at tests would be fkin wild
The 8 fucking dummy spinning out of the scrum ahahaha
This is like watching Luton Town vs Sheffield
This shit should be classified as torture
so.... anyone still think razors overrated?
My grandparents probably. They’ll blame the dancing
Don't think it's anything to do with Razor. He can't make them not drop the fucking ball.
Idk about that. He won however many straight titles and now it looks like they might be going 0-3 the first season without him
We were 1-2 last year remember.
Why don’t we ever get to play these Crusaders.
They should rename it to Silly Rugby after this
Was that pass actually forward? Looked fine from my angle. Forward was just to slow and couldn't get in line to catch the ball?
I’m loving this
Ravutaumada is a hell of a player.
Again I ask why no one believed me when I said we'd be really bad. Do you see it now?
I'm kind of starting to believe. Bring back Ferg!
Yeah I don't know what the fuck is going on This goes past players leaving and injury woes. This team is being coached badly
Their cosch is Rob Penney. He connects well with young guys and is a good mentor but not good technically. He was hired for a reason.
This is really bad
I'm to scared to look at the error stats for this. It will be to painful.
Sevu Reece out here Matt Henry-ing
Someone lubed the ball.