Crusaders clear the air
On the back of their first Super 14 defeat of the season, against the Chiefs, the Crusaders held an open and honest team meeting on Monday to clear the air.
On the back of their first Super 14 defeat of the season, against the Chiefs, the Crusaders held an open and honest team meeting on Monday to clear the air.
Head Coach Robbie Deans, who leaves his post at the end of this campaign, gathered his charges before training on Monday so that they could voice their thoughts from Friday's 18-5 defeat.
Next up for the Crusaders is a home game against the Blues, on Anzac Day, and the squad are clearly focused on returning to winning ways.
Greg Somerville rated the meeting as a very worthwhile exercise as they broke down the 5-18 defeat at Waikato Stadium, a setback he suggested could end up being a blessing in disguise in the long run.
“It was pretty honest and open, we got it out there and talked about a few things,” Somerville told Sportal.
“It's been a good meeting, the boys responded well and it's what needed to come back to earth a bit.
“We definitely needed it. We were pretty slack on the weekend but it's not going to hurt us – it's a bit of a reality check and if you can't respond to that then there's something wrong.”
Along with the realisation that “we're not unbeatable”, the All Black prop said the main topic of discussion focused on a lack of hunger at the contact area where the Chiefs “were a lot more desperate and enthusiastic than us”.
“We didn't rise to the occasion,” the prop admitted.
“They wanted it more than us and it was pretty disappointing on our behalf with our attitude and as things grew we died and we didn't respond to what the Chiefs brought to us.”
It was the second time the Crusaders had faced a New Zealand side coming off a bye this season and that will become three when the beleaguered Blues turn up at AMI Stadium on Friday.
A loss will all but doom the Blues' play-off hopes so they will hold a similar determination to the one that got the Chiefs over the line.
But the Crusaders have their own motivation, as was discussed in their Monday meeting of the minds, where they targeted a home semi-final to avoid last year's fate in tripping at the penultimate hurdle when beaten by the Bulls in Pretoria.
“You're always targeting to make the semis and then if you can get a home one it's always a bonus to play in front of your home crowd,” Somerville said.
“It's going to be a real race in the last four rounds to see who makes the semis and gets home spots.”
Although admitting lock Ali Williams would come in for some special attention from his former Blues team-mates, Somerville played down any talk of a grudge-match and said playing as a team would be the key to getting the Crusaders back in the winner's circle.